| Submit your comments on this article |
| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Hostilities in Chechnya to end once Basayev and Maskhadov are toes up |
| 2004-12-22 |
| The counter-terrorist operation in Chechnya will continue as long as Maskhadov and Basayev are alive. This opinion was expressed by head of republican commandos Artur Akhmadov in an interview with Tass on Sunday. "We tracked down Maskhadov last autumn and sealed off his gang of gunmen in the south-east of the republic, in the Nozhai-Yurt district. We understood from our intelligence data and radio interceptions that Maskhadov was among gunmen. Regrettably, we could not catch him at that time. We evidently sealed off not all loopholes and could not ward off the retreat of terrorists," the commander reported. According to Akhmadov, Basayev is in hiding in the Chechen territory, but it is unknown where he is exactly. Bandits do not control anything in the republic, the commander emphasized. They operate deep underground. The only thing they could learn well, is to hide. They can leave their gangs at a required time and go home, if need be," the head of commandos noted. In Akhmadov's words, gunmen have among them Arabs, including Abu Omar, Abu Khavs and other international terrorists. "True, they operate in Chechnya not on a permanent basis. They make sallies in summer and leave the republic in winter," he added. The Chechen commander also expressed confidence that there is an understanding between Maskhadov and Basayev on joint actions: Basayev assumed the role of a terrorist, while Maskhadov, denying his complicity in terror acts, tries to portray himself as a fighter for independence. "But I'm sure that this is a hypocrisy, and they plan every next terror act jointly," Akhmadov continued. According to Akhmadov, his idea is corroborated by the fact that when Basayev and his gunmen attacked Dagestan in 1999, Maskhadov did not disassociate himself from Basayev and decided to fight federal troops together with Basayev". |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |