Aiza Gazuyeva
Encyclopedia
Aiza Gazuyeva was a young Chechen
woman who become the first shahidka
(Chechen female suicide bomber
). In November 2001, Gazuyeva assassinated
through suicide attack
the Russian General
Gaidar Gadzhiyev (or Geidar Gadzhiev), commandant
of the Urus-Martan
military district in Chechnya
, the man she believed was directly responsible the death of her husband. This spontaneous attack was unclaimed by the Chechen rebels.
Not much is known for sure about Gazuyeva, a semi-legendary figure in Chechnya, who at the time of her death was either 18 or 20 years old. It is said that she had lost a husband (they were married only for two months), two brothers, and a cousin in the war before her spontaneous revenge attack. In one traumatic event, her disabled brother (who had lost both legs to a land mine in the first war) was shot dead without reason by the Russian troops near their family home. Gadzhiyev, an ethnic Avar
military officer commonly accused by locals of atrocities against civilians, reportedly summoned Gazuyeva to witness the death of her arrested husband, brutally killing him with a knife and then pulling her head into the gaping stomach wound. According to the other version, the general told Gazuyeva that he killed her husband with his own hands during an interrogation.
On November 29, 2001, Gazuyeva blew herself up with a bundle of hand grenade
s after she approached the general and a group of other Russian soldiers in front of the military commandant's office (Rus.
komendatura). Reportedly, her last words were: "Do you recognize me?", to which Gadzhiyev replied: "I have no time to talk to you!" - after the general's answer, Gazuyeva detonated the grenades hidden under her clothes. Gazuyeva died instantly, her head blown off several meters away. Gadzhiyev, who was wearing a flack jacket, was critically wounded (losing both of his eyes and one arm) and died of his injuries days later. Two other Russian soldiers were also killed in the blast and two more were injured.
The incident was followed by a wave of severe reprisals by federal forces against family of Aiza Gazuyeva and the local population. The soldiers blew up the home of Gazuyeva and her parents, as well as the houses belonging to at least four other families, while several men from Gazuyev's family were detained and beaten. Soon after the attack, 72 people were detained in the city of Urus-Martan and some of them were reported to having been "disappeared"
. One day after the general's assassination, several people were detained in the nearby village of Alkhan-Yurt and some of them were later found murdered (on December 13, disfigured bodies of several men killed by explosive devices were discovered in Chechnya and later identified as residents of three villages in the Urus-Martan region who had disappeared early in December, including four who were among those detained in Alkhan-Yurt: Lom-Ali Yunusov, his relative Musa Yunusov, Shamil Dzhemaldayev and Aslan Taramov).
Chechen people
Chechens constitute the largest native ethnic group originating in the North Caucasus region. They refer to themselves as Noxçi . Also known as Sadiks , Gargareans, Malkhs...
woman who become the first shahidka
Shahidka
Shahidka |shahid]]), sometimes called "Black Widow", is a term for Islamist Chechen female suicide bombers, who made themselves known at the Moscow theater hostage crisis of October 2002...
(Chechen female suicide bomber
Female suicide bomber
Though the majority of suicide bombers have been male, female suicide bombers have carried out a number of attacks.-History:Female suicide bombers have been employed in several conflicts, by a variety of organizations, against both military and civilian targets.*In Lebanon on April 9, 1985, Sana'a...
). In November 2001, Gazuyeva assassinated
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
through suicide attack
Suicide attack
A suicide attack is a type of attack in which the attacker expects or intends to die in the process.- Historical :...
the Russian General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Gaidar Gadzhiyev (or Geidar Gadzhiev), commandant
Commandant
Commandant is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy. This usage is common in anglophone nations...
of the Urus-Martan
Urus-Martan
Urus-Martan is a town and the administrative center of Urus-Martanovsky District of the Chechen Republic, Russia, located on the Martan River. The town is located in the central part of the republic, to the southwest of the capital Grozny. Population:...
military district in Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
, the man she believed was directly responsible the death of her husband. This spontaneous attack was unclaimed by the Chechen rebels.
Not much is known for sure about Gazuyeva, a semi-legendary figure in Chechnya, who at the time of her death was either 18 or 20 years old. It is said that she had lost a husband (they were married only for two months), two brothers, and a cousin in the war before her spontaneous revenge attack. In one traumatic event, her disabled brother (who had lost both legs to a land mine in the first war) was shot dead without reason by the Russian troops near their family home. Gadzhiyev, an ethnic Avar
Caucasian Avars
Avars or Caucasian Avars are a modern people of Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan, in which they are the predominant group. The Caucasian Avar language belongs to the Northeast Caucasian language family ....
military officer commonly accused by locals of atrocities against civilians, reportedly summoned Gazuyeva to witness the death of her arrested husband, brutally killing him with a knife and then pulling her head into the gaping stomach wound. According to the other version, the general told Gazuyeva that he killed her husband with his own hands during an interrogation.
On November 29, 2001, Gazuyeva blew herself up with a bundle of hand grenade
Hand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
s after she approached the general and a group of other Russian soldiers in front of the military commandant's office (Rus.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
komendatura). Reportedly, her last words were: "Do you recognize me?", to which Gadzhiyev replied: "I have no time to talk to you!" - after the general's answer, Gazuyeva detonated the grenades hidden under her clothes. Gazuyeva died instantly, her head blown off several meters away. Gadzhiyev, who was wearing a flack jacket, was critically wounded (losing both of his eyes and one arm) and died of his injuries days later. Two other Russian soldiers were also killed in the blast and two more were injured.
The incident was followed by a wave of severe reprisals by federal forces against family of Aiza Gazuyeva and the local population. The soldiers blew up the home of Gazuyeva and her parents, as well as the houses belonging to at least four other families, while several men from Gazuyev's family were detained and beaten. Soon after the attack, 72 people were detained in the city of Urus-Martan and some of them were reported to having been "disappeared"
Forced disappearance
In international human rights law, a forced disappearance occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the...
. One day after the general's assassination, several people were detained in the nearby village of Alkhan-Yurt and some of them were later found murdered (on December 13, disfigured bodies of several men killed by explosive devices were discovered in Chechnya and later identified as residents of three villages in the Urus-Martan region who had disappeared early in December, including four who were among those detained in Alkhan-Yurt: Lom-Ali Yunusov, his relative Musa Yunusov, Shamil Dzhemaldayev and Aslan Taramov).