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| Surrealpolitik - Basayev colleague based in DC |
| 2005-03-21 |
| Apologies in advance for the editing, I tried to cut out as much of the background material as possible. If this guy is a Chechen terrorist, though, there is no way I want him on US soil. The apartment felt like a safe house. The curtains were drawn. Someone else's family portraits hung on the walls, and a stranger's books lined the shelves. Other than a small framed photograph of the sons he had not seen in nearly three years, Ilyas Akhmadov hadn't bothered to unpack in the two weeks that he'd been there. His meager belongings stood near the door, ready for a hasty exit. The 44-year-old fugitive Chechen rebel leader had made more than a few hurried departures on his way to becoming one of Russia's most wanted men, and he had been almost constantly on the move since fellow insurgents smuggled him out of war-torn Grozny in 1999. But on the day intermediaries arranged for us to first meet last fall, Akhmadov seemed anxious not to leave the temporary sanctuary offered by this borrowed two-bedroom apartment. "Will you have another coffee?" he asked shyly in Russian. It was his fifth and my fourth, and the air had grown thick from countless cigarettes. As he spoke of Chechnya's two-century struggle for independence, smoke swirled around his spiky gray mustache, and, in the dark, caffeinated atmosphere, he looked momentarily like the sinister image of the jihadist mastermind he is accused of being. "I'm a little afraid to go outside," he finally confessed. "Someone might recognize me." |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #9 Mrs D- Actually, as much as I liked LeCarre's George Smiley books, he is in reality a Grade A World Class Moonbat. He's so far out of it, he thought Bill Clinton was a war criminal. Also, Le Carre is overrated. He can't hold a candle to, say, Charles McCarry as a writer. |
| Posted by: Jonathan 2005-03-21 1:20:56 PM |
| #8 Let him go back and face his own. I'd bet there are more than a few people still alive in Chechnya who know him and would welcome the opportunity to have achat with him. Poor beastie, he's afraid to go outside! The fresh air and sunlight of Chechnya may do him more good than he could imagine. His supporters could go back with him too and the swank 2 bedroom apartment he's holed up in could be put to better purposes in the exchange. |
| Posted by: Tkat 2005-03-21 9:17:50 AM |
| #7 Mrs D- Actually, as much as I liked LeCarre's George Smiley books, he is in reality a Grade A World Class Moonbat. He's so far out of it, he thought Bill Clinton was a war criminal. Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2005-03-21 7:51:12 AM |
| #6 It is reassuring to return to that cold war sense of universal non-credibility, suspicion, and unknown motives. Perhaps Le Carre can get a new novel out of this. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-03-21 7:21:29 AM |
| #5 If he is a terrorist I want him gone, even if he was only peripheral to terrorist acts. This two faced stance on the Chechens is BS. None of them are "freedom fighters." That list of "supporters" doesn't do a thing for me |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O’ Doom 2005-03-21 5:25:03 AM |
| #4 Here's the Rantburg archives for Akhmadov. Not a lot of specifics. I like the comments to this article. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2005-03-21 3:32:20 AM |
| #3 I have absolutely no idea why all these folks are defending him, could be he's innocent. All the stuff against him could be Russian propaganda, certainly wouldn't be the first time they've lied to us on Chechnya-related stuff. Oh, and for all those who think that all the Islamist is nothing but Russian propaganda, Akhmadov himself describes Basayev as an Islamo-fascist in league with Binny's lieutenant Khattab. This is honestly the first time I'd ever really heard of Akhmadov, he certainly doesn't seem to be as high-profile as Zakayev. Still, if he has any ties whatsoever to the monster that orchestrated Beslan I want his ass deported to Russia ASAP. He and Vlad would deserve each other. |
| Posted by: Dan Darling 2005-03-21 3:13:25 AM |
| #2 It was a feature article in WaPo Sunday magazine. I'll move most of this to Page 71 but it is worth reading. Thanks for the editing, Dan; I didn't really feel like tackling it myself. The part that interested me is the A-list of names supporting him--why are all these pols and policy types defending him? |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2005-03-21 3:03:58 AM |
| #1 This is the EFL version? Cripes. |
| Posted by: gromky 2005-03-21 1:31:13 AM |