Free Republic

A Russian Orthodox priest has sparked controversy with his provocative claim that Russian Muslims could be mobilized to commit violence against Christians. The statement was made as Moscow's Muslim community celebrated the holy festival of Eid al-Adha on Sunday. Schema-abbot Gavriil, during his sermon, referred to the Muslims congregating on Peace Avenue in Moscow for the festivities: "The entire space is covered with people. And these are healthy men, who do not drink alcohol, who wrestle and go to gyms for training." He made an alarming assertion: "This is a whole army. And if, one fine day, a mullah orders...

Leader of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov has requested to be relieved of his duties, he told Chechnya Today news agency, APA’s Russia bureau reports citing lenta.ru. Kadyrov made the remarks in response to circulating rumors about his possible resignation. “I myself am asking to be relieved of my duties. Someone else will have their own initiative, their own vision. I hope that my request will be supported,” Kadyrov said. The Chechen leader did not specify who he had specifically addressed regarding his dismissal.

Russian state media reported that the 17-year-old was named curator of Chechnya's internal affairs ministry on Monday, meaning he'll oversee police and local security forces. The ministry also handles counterterrorism and riot control. A state broadcast showed the teen receiving the appointment at a ceremonial meeting as uniformed officers applauded. Soon after, he was filmed performing his duties by naming a new head of Chechnya's operational search division and handing out medals to police officers. The 17-year-old was already appointed overseer of Chechnya's Russian Special Forces University last April. The university says it teaches civilians and soldiers skills such as...

PUTIN henchman and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is "preparing to flee Russia" - as he has put his son in charge of the police. The infamous leader of Chechnya has already made several moves to prepare for his escape - and his efforts have sparked a conflict with Kremlin cronies. The 48-year-old dictator is a vocal supporter of Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, and has sent tens of thousands of troops to support the bloody war in Ukraine. He has also been accused of violating human rights, including involvement in kidnapping and torture. But relations between Putin and Kadyrov have soured...

Kremlin aide on threats to Russian sovereignty 20:38 | 03/ 03/ 2006 MOSCOW, March 3 (RIA Novosti) - International terrorism, economic non-competitiveness and the possibility of "color revolutions" were the principal threats to Russia's national sovereignty a presidential aide said in a text published on Friday. Vladislav Surkov, speaking at a meeting of the pro-Kremlin United Russia Party on February 7 and quoted on the party's official site, said a "soft takeover" based on modern "orange methods" in the face of the nations' reduced ability to counter foreign interference posed a serious danger. The "orange revolution" that swept Ukrainian President...

This the kind of question Mrs Merton might ask. "So, Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, what do you see in a 24-year-old, sensationally beautiful gymnast with a penchant for posing semi-naked that you don't see in your lovely, middle-aged, matronly wife Ludmilla?" It is also the kind of question that hardly needs answering for the millions who have tuned in to the YouTube film of Alina Kabaeva performing a decidedly provocative gymnastic routine.

In my latest video report, I bring you straight to the frontlines of the Russia-Ukraine war, where a Ukrainian kamikaze drone nearly took my life during a combat operation in Russia’s Kursk region. This was one of the closest calls I’ve had while reporting from the battlefield—and that’s saying something after years of covering warzones. The footage captures the heart-pounding moment a Ukrainian FPV (First-Person View) drone locked onto our position as I rode alongside Russian Akhmat special forces during a civilian evacuation mission (With 5 elderly civilians inside the truck). As soon as we spotted the drone overhead, chaos...

Vladimir Putin is 'alive' but 'neutralised' as shadowy security chiefs stage a stealthy coup in Moscow, it was claimed last night. Former FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev was behind the plot, claimed chairman of the pro-Kremlin national Islamic Committee, Geydar Dzhemal. Snip... 'I think that Putin is neutralised at the moment, but of course, he is alive,' said Dzhemal, seen as a Kremlin loyalist. 'He is under the control of the power-wielding agencies, who have, in my opinion, organised a coup d'etat.' snip.. 'My information is that Patrushev met Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov in Pyatigorsk on 11 March and tempted him...

To the European Court of Human Rights From Oleg Alexandrovich Zhirov, Address ----------- The Netherlands Telephone: -------- A description of the events at the Dubrovka theatrical center, in the city of Moscow, October 23-26, 2002. On October 23, 2002, my wife, Natalya Zhirova, and our 14- year-old son, Dmitriy, were in attendance at the Russian musical 'Nord-Ost', being held at the Dubrovka theatrical center. I learned of the theater's seizure by terrorists from the television. I immediately dressed myself, and within 15 minutes I was at Dubrovka. I received the first call from my wife on my mobile phone as...

In a September 1 CBC TV interview, Ramzan Kadyrov, President of the Chechen Republic, rejected claims that he was a dictator. If you show my photo to any Chechen child, he will say: "That's Ramzan, and I love him," said Kadyrov, adding: "Indeed, I am dictatorial against Europe and the kharijites of our age." Noting that the wars have led to an imbalance in the female-male ratio in his country, Kadyrov called upon Chechens to practice polygamy, saying that otherwise, "where will these poor girls go?"

During his visit to Chechnya on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin stopped at the Prophet Isa mosque in Grozny and posed for photos while holding, and kissing, a gold-leaf copy of the Quran. Putin was flanked by his hand-picked Chechen leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, and top Chechen Muslim cleric Mufti Saah Mezhiev during his Quran smooch. The Grand Mufti ceremonially read a verse from the Quran, translated into Russian for Putin. The Prophet Isa mosque, constructed in 2020, is a huge and expensive structure that can accommodate 5,000 worshipers at once. “Prophet Isa” is Islam’s version of Jesus Christ, who ranks...

Wars are often chaotic, but the introduction of foreign troops can add another layer of confusion. In the Kursk region of Russia, that confusion appears to have turned deadly. According to Ukraine’s defense intelligence (GUR) and Hotnews, North Korean soldiers accidentally killed eight Chechen fighters from the Akhmat battalion. The incident, GUR claims, was caused by a language barrier between the North Korean troops and their Russian allies. The Chechens, loyal to Ramzan Kadyrov, were reportedly mistaken for enemy forces. The North Koreans fired on their vehicles, leading to the deaths. This is part of a larger development. Ukraine says...

Kremlin sources have revealed the tricks Russia reportedly used to smuggle President Bashar al-Assad out of Syria as his regime suddenly collapsed. It comes as one of Vladimir Putin's allies confirmed for the first time today that Russia did indeed help the ousted dictator flee to Moscow. Three sources told Bloomberg News that Moscow organised for Assad to escape via its air base on the Syrian coast, using a 'transponder trick'. He was reportedly ordered to tell no-one, switch his transponder off and get on his private plane in the capital Damascus. The aircraft then travelled to Russia’s Khmeimim air...

A U.S. Army Colonel reportedly shot and killed an alleged Chechen intruder outside the Colonel’s residence just north of Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, in North Carolina. The incident occurred May 3, 2024, but the details of the shooting were reported May 22 and 23, 2024. “Two Chechen men who spoke broken English were found near the [Colonel’s] home” and one of them, 35-year-old Ramzan Daraev, was allegedly taking photos of the Colonel’s children, according to FOX News,

The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, has criticized tightening of the migration policy in Russia. "There's a sense that someone is deliberately trying to pit Russia against its neighboring brotherly regions. If migration policy is to be changed, it shouldn’t be done in such a repulsive manner, where people are fiercely attacking anyone who looks foreign. Detentions are carried out without any ceremony, and recently, these actions have become very harsh," Kadyrov wrote in a post on his Telegram channel. In his view, migration issues cannot be resolved through "mass deportations of foreign citizens," and the problems did not arise...

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has accused Russian lawmakers from neighbouring regions of attempting to commission his assassination, and threatened them with a "blood feud" unless they prove otherwise, state news agency TASS reported. TASS cited Chechen-language comments by Kadyrov, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, to a meeting of Chechen security officials. Video of the meeting was published on Kadyrov's personal Telegram channel on Wednesday. The news agency translated Kadyrov's comments as: "There are witnesses, there are people from whom they tried to commission, whom they asked how much they would take for the order." TASS cited Kadyrov...

A little over a year ago, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Putin’s former cook and the founder of the notorious Wagner private military company, launched a coup attempt that fizzled quickly. But, significantly, the Russian military and security services did nothing to stop it. They just watched — hardly a sign of their loyalty to Putin. A few days ago, Georgy Zakrevsky, another head of a private military company, effectively called on Russians to get rid of the “Great” Putin (his modifier, not mine). When the guys with the guns start making fun of your greatness, it may be time to read the...

Lt-Gen Yuri Kuznetsov was arrested "on suspicion of criminal activity" just after Putin dismissed his Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu. A RUSSIAN general was dragged out of his bed at 5am to be taken into detention facing "criminal charges over state secrets" in Vladimir Putin's latest purge. Lt-Gen Yuri Kuznetsov, 55, was arrested by heavily armed cops in balaclavas who smashed their way into his home using crowbars. The top MoD official was reportedly “dragged out of bed and taken away for interrogation”. The arrest of the military chief comes a day after Vladimir Putin oversaw major changes in Russia's defence,...

At least five police officers were killed and a priest was beheaded in terrorist attacks in Dagestan on Sunday. BREAKING: Islamist terror attack in Dagestan, Russia against a synagogue and a church. At least 5 police officers k*lled and 1 priest beheaded. The bearded terrorists are all dressed in black and are shouting “Allahu Akbar” pic.twitter.com/m8TsDOymsq — Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) June 23, 2024 Bearded gunman dressed in black attacked the synagogue and a church. BREAKING: Coordinated Islamist terror attacks in Dagestan, Russia. Bearded gunmen dressed in black have attacked a synagogue and a church. At least 6 people k*lled pic.twitter.com/iE6chKbBfh...

Former American intelligence officer Scott Ritter has visited the Russian republic of Chechnya, offering its leader Ramzan Kadyrov and his fighters "friendship" with the United States. Ritter, a former United Nations Special Commission weapons inspector, U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer, and a convicted sex offender, made the remarks in an address during his visit to Chechnya's capital, Grozny.