Aslan Maskhadov
Encyclopedia
Aslan Aliyevich Maskhadov (Chechen
: Аслан Али кӏант Масхадан, Latin
: Aslan Ali kant Masxadaŋ, Russian
: Аслан Алиевич Масхадов) (September 21, 1951 – March 8, 2005) was a leader of the Chechen separatist
movement and the third President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
.
He was credited by many with the Chechen
victory in the First Chechen War
, which allowed for the establishment of the de facto independent Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
. Maskhadov was elected President
of Chechnya
in January 1997. Following the start of the Second Chechen War
in August 1999, he returned to leading the guerrilla
resistance
against the Russian army. He was killed in Tolstoy-Yurt, a village in northern Chechnya, in March 2005.
, in the small village of Shakai, during the mass deportation of the Chechen people
ordered in 1944 by Joseph Stalin
. His family was of the Alleroi teip
. In 1957, his family returned to Chechnya
where they settled in Zebir-Yurt, Nadterechny District
.
Maskhadov joined the Soviet Army
, trained in the neighbouring Georgian SSR and graduated from the Tbilisi
Artillery School in 1972. He then graduated with honours from the Leningrad
Kalinin Higher Artillery in 1981. He was posted to Hungary
with a self-propelled artillery
regiment until 1986 and then from 1986 in the Baltic Military District
. He served from 1990 as the chief of staff
of Soviet missile and artillery forces in Vilnius
, capital of the Lithuanian SSR
. In January 1991, Maskhadov participated in the January Events
, the seizure of the television tower by Soviet troops (which he regretted later), but didn't participate in the assault itself. During his service in the Soviet Army, he was presented with two Orders For Service to Homeland
. Maskhadov retired from the Soviet Army in 1992 with the rank of a colonel
and returned to his native land. He was at the head of ChRI civil defence between late 1992 and November 1993.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, in the summer of 1993, Maskhadov took part in raids on the armed opposition against the government of Dzhokhar Dudayev in the Urus-Martan
, Nadterechny, and Gudermes
districts. An unsuccessful anti-Dudayev mutiny
in November 1993 resulted in the dismissal of Viskhan Shakhabov as chief of staff of the Chechen armed forces, Maskhadov was appointed as the acting chief of staff and, in March 1994, as the chief of staff.
broke out, he was the senior military figure on the Chechen side during the war and was widely seen as being instrumental to the Chechen victory over the Russian forces. As the First Deputy Chairman of the ChRI State Defence Council (ChRI President Dudayev was the chairman) and the chief of staff, Maskhadov organised defence of the Chechen capital during the Battle of Grozny
. Maskhadov commanded the city from the Presidential Palace in Grozny
, where on one occasion a Russian bunker buster
bomb landed 20 meters from him but failed to explode. In February 1995, Dudayev promoted Aslan to Divisional General
.
From June 1995, Maskhadov took part in peace talks in Grozny
to resolve the crisis in Chechnya. In June 1996, at the negotiations in Nazran
, Ingushetia
, Maskhadov, on behalf of the ChRI administration, signed the Protocol of the Commission's Meeting on Ceasefire and Measures to Resolve the Armed Conflict in the CRI. In August 1996, after Grozny's seizure by Chechen units he repeatedly held talks with Alexander Lebed and on August 31, 1996, the signing of the Khasav-Yurt Accord
took place, a ceasefire
agreement, and peace treaty which marked the end of the First Chechen War.
On October 17, 1996, Maskhadov was appointed Prime Minister
of Ichkeria
, while he also remained Chief of Staff and Defence Minister
. Maskhadov nominated himself for President of Ichkeria
on December 3, 1996, for the January 1997 free democratic
presidential and parliamentary elections held in Chechnya under the aegis of the OSCE
, running primarily against Shamil Basayev
and Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev
.
The elections were conducted on the basis of the Chechen constitution
adopted in March 1992, according to which the Chechen Republic was an independent state. Representatives of more than 20 countries, as well as the United Nations
and the OSCE, attended the elections as observers.
Running with Vakha Arsanov
, who became his Vice-President, Mashkadov won a majority of 60% of the votes and was congratulated by the President of Russia Boris Yeltsin
, who pledged to work towards rebuilding relations with Chechnya. Maskhadov was inaugurated on February 12, 1997, and at the same time he assumed the office of Prime Minister
and abolished the office of Defence Minister he had occupied since late 1996. Maskhadov remained commander-in-chief of the republican armed forces. On May 12, 1997, Maskhadov then attained the apex of his political career when he signed a peace treaty
with Yeltsin at the Kremlin
.
s had no intention to disband their militias. Under such circumstances, Maskhadov's political fortunes began to wane. His political standing within Chechnya became increasingly insecure as he lost control to Basayev and other warlord
s. Even his Vice-President Arsanov became his political enemy. Just like in the years before the First Chechen War under Dudayev, the years of Chechen independence were notorious for organized crime
, including kidnapping
, leading to several public execution
s of criminals.
Maskhadov attempted with only limited success to curb the growth of Wahhabism
and other fundamentalist Muslim
groups supported by Basayev, producing a split in the Chechen separatist movement between Islamic fundamentalism
and Chechen
nationalists
. In February 1999, as a concession to radical islamists, Maskhadov introduced Islamic Sharia law
. The Sharia courts that were established sentenced people to death, flogging, executing people for crimes such as adultery.
Maskhadov survived several assassination
attempts on his life on 23 July 1998, and March 21 and April 10, 1999, in which the attackers used anti-tank missiles and bombs. Russian secret services were officially blamed.
to spread war to the neighboring republic of Dagestan
(known as the Invasion of Dagestan). This raid, and the Russian Apartment Bombings
, were both blamed on the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. On October 1, 1999, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
declared the authority of President Maskhadov and his parliament
illegitimate. Putin sent Russian forces into Chechnya, and his promise of a quick and decisive victory propelled him to the Russian Presidency.
On October 11, 1999, Maskhadov outlined a peace plan offering a crackdown on renegade warlords, the offer was rejected by the Russian side. In response, President Maskhadov declared a gazavat
(holy war
) to confront the approaching Russian army. Soon, martial law
was declared in Ichkeria and reservists were called, and the building of his Presidential Palace was one of a supposed targets of the disastrous Grozny ballistic missile attack
on October 23, 1999.
Maskhadov was one of the main commanders in the Battle of Grozny (1999–2000)
along with Shamil Basayev
, Ruslan Gelayev, Ibn Al-Khattab
, Aslambek Ismailov, & Khunkarpasha Israpilov. Aslan Maskhadov along with his men launched daring counter-attacks against the Russian troops while fighting in Grozny
and also effectively used the sewer systems to attack Russian troops from behind. After a meeting with top rebel commanders Maskhadov and others agreed to withdraw from Grozny and continue to attack Russian forces in the city's and towns surrounding the city. Maskhadov was the first to withdraw because of his importance to the rebel cause and because he was the official President of Chechnya. As Maskhadov and his men retreated they set up vast amounts of booby traps and landmines to hinder Russian forces and make most of Grozny impassable.
After Chechen forces' withdrawal from devastated capital following another battle for the city, Maskhadov returned to life as a guerrilla leader, living in hiding as Russia's second most wanted man after Basayev, with Russia placing a $10 million bounty
on his capture. He was seen as the official political leader of the separatist forces during the war, but it is unclear what kind of a military role he played. Maskhadov offered his readiness for unconditional peace talks with Moscow several times in 2000 alone, continuing in the following years, but his appeals for the political solution were always ignored by the Russian side.
Maskhadov advocated armed resistance to what he saw as a Russian occupation but condemned attacks on civilians. He allegedly supported the assassination of pro-Russian Chechen President Akhmad Kadyrov
in Chechnya, whilst condemning the Russian assassination of Chechen separatist ex-President Yandarbiyev in Qatar
in 2004. Maskhadov often denied responsibility for the increasingly brutal terrorist acts against Russian civilians by Basayev's followers, continually issuing denunciations of such incidents through spokesmen abroad, such as Akhmed Zakayev
in London
. However, on October 24, 2002, radio communications were intercepted from Maskhadov's messages wherein he called for intensification of terrorist activities and sabotage in Russian territory. Evidence for Maskhadov's complicity in the 2002 Moscow theater hostage crisis
was provided by its two principal perpetrators, Movsar Barayev and Abu Said. Although he initially denied responsibility for the 2004 Nazran raid
, in which 98 police officers/troops were killed, in July, 2004 Maskhadov publicly accepted responsibility for the attacks. In the same month, Maskahdov promised similar attacks would happen, and vowed the winner of Chechnya's upcoming presidential election would be illegitimate and if necessary attacked. He described the rebels behind the Beslan school siege as "madmen" driven out of their senses by Russian acts of brutality and called the terrorist attack an atrocity.
On January 15, 2005, Maskhadov issued a special order to stop all military operations except those in self-defense, both inside and outside Chechnya, until the end of February (the date marking the anniversary of the Stalin's Vainakh deportations of 1944) as a gesture of good will, and again called for a negotiated end to the Chechen conflict. Umar Khambiev, his designated negotiator said the separatists were no longer seeking independence, but only "guarantees for the existence of the Chechen nation". This surprise unilateral ceasefire
was supported by Basayev but flatly rejected by the Russian and pro-Russian leaders who once again refused to negotiate. Maskhadov's order to temporarily cease the offensive actions was largely followed by the rebel movement, except in Dagestan.
thrown into a bunker where Maskhadov was hiding. Akhmed Zakayev
, one of his closest allies who acted as his spokesman and foreign minister, told a Russian radio station that it was probable that Maskhadov had indeed been killed; he indicated later that a new Chechen leader could be chosen within days. Vladimir Putin
awarded those responsible for the killings with medals. Shortly following Maskhadov's death, the Chechen rebel council announced that Abdul-Halim Sadulayev had assumed the leadership.
Four Chechens, Vakhit Murdashev, Viskhan Hadzhimuradov, Skanarbek Yusupov and Ilias Iriskhanov, were captured by the special operation. According to the ballistic evidence at their trial in the Supreme Court of Chechen Republic, Maskhadov was killed by a shot from a pistol of Viskhan Hadzhimuradov, his nephew and bodyguard. Hadzhimuradov testified that he does not remember whether he shot Maskhadov or not since he was stunned by an explosion but after the capture Hadzhimuradov reportedly said: "My uncle always told me to shoot him if he is wounded and his capture is immenient. He said that if he is taken prisoner, he would be mistreated like Saddam Hussein had been".
Maskhadov's family has been campaigning for the release of his remains or a disclosure of what happened to his body.
, and a daughter, Fatima.
Chechen language
The Chechen language is spoken by more than 1.5 million people, mostly in Chechnya and by Chechen people elsewhere. It is a member of the Northeast Caucasian languages.-Classification:...
: Аслан Али кӏант Масхадан, Latin
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
: Aslan Ali kant Masxadaŋ, Russian
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...
: Аслан Алиевич Масхадов) (September 21, 1951 – March 8, 2005) was a leader of the Chechen separatist
Separatism
Separatism is the advocacy of a state of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. While it often refers to full political secession, separatist groups may seek nothing more than greater autonomy...
movement and the third President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
The Chechen Republic of Ichkeria is the unrecognized secessionist government of Chechnya. The republic was proclaimed in late 1991 by Dzokhar Dudayev, and fought two devastating wars between separatists and the Russian Federation which denounced secession...
.
He was credited by many with the Chechen
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...
victory in the First Chechen War
First Chechen War
The First Chechen War, also known as the War in Chechnya, was a conflict between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from December 1994 to August 1996...
, which allowed for the establishment of the de facto independent Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
The Chechen Republic of Ichkeria is the unrecognized secessionist government of Chechnya. The republic was proclaimed in late 1991 by Dzokhar Dudayev, and fought two devastating wars between separatists and the Russian Federation which denounced secession...
. Maskhadov was elected President
President of Ichkeria
This is a list of Presidents of the unrecognised Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, a pro-independence movement that controlled most of Chechnya from 1991 to 1999...
of 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...
in January 1997. Following the start of the Second Chechen War
Second Chechen War
The Second Chechen War, in a later phase better known as the War in the North Caucasus, was launched by the Russian Federation starting 26 August 1999, in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade ....
in August 1999, he returned to leading the guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
resistance
Resistance movement
A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance or the use of armed force...
against the Russian army. He was killed in Tolstoy-Yurt, a village in northern Chechnya, in March 2005.
Early life
On September 21, 1951, Aslan Aliyevich Maskhadov was born in the Karagandy Province of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) of the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, in the small village of Shakai, during the mass deportation of the Chechen people
Operation Lentil
Operation Lentil may refer to:* Operation Lentil , deportation of populations by Soviet Union* Operation Lentil , British naval air attack on Japanese installations...
ordered in 1944 by Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. His family was of the Alleroi teip
Teip
Teip is a Chechen and Ingush tribal organization or clan, self-identified through descent from a common ancestor and geographic location. There are about 130-233 teips...
. In 1957, his family returned to 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...
where they settled in Zebir-Yurt, Nadterechny District
Nadterechny District
Nadterechny District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the fifteen in the Chechen Republic, Russia. Its administrative center is the rural locality of Znamenskoye. District's population: 51,755 ; Population of Znamenskoye accounts for 18.6% of the district's population....
.
Maskhadov joined the Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
, trained in the neighbouring Georgian SSR and graduated from the Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
Artillery School in 1972. He then graduated with honours from the Leningrad
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
Kalinin Higher Artillery in 1981. He was posted to Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
with a self-propelled artillery
Self-propelled artillery
Self-propelled artillery vehicles are combat vehicles armed with artillery. Within the term are covered self-propelled guns and rocket artillery...
regiment until 1986 and then from 1986 in the Baltic Military District
Baltic Military District
The Baltic Military District was a military district of the Soviet armed forces, formed briefly before the German invasion, and then reformed after World War II and disbanded after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991....
. He served from 1990 as the chief of staff
Chief of Staff
The title, chief of staff, identifies the leader of a complex organization, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a Principal Staff Officer , who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide to an important individual, such as a president.In general, a chief of...
of Soviet missile and artillery forces in Vilnius
Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
, capital of the Lithuanian SSR
Lithuanian SSR
The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Lithuanian SSR, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union...
. In January 1991, Maskhadov participated in the January Events
January Events
The January Events took place in Lithuania between January 11 and 13, 1991 in the aftermath of the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania. As a result of Soviet military actions, 14 civilians were killed and more than 1000 injured...
, the seizure of the television tower by Soviet troops (which he regretted later), but didn't participate in the assault itself. During his service in the Soviet Army, he was presented with two Orders For Service to Homeland
Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces
The Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR also known as Order of Service to Motherland was a USSR military order created on 28 October 1974, making it the first military order created after the end of World War II.According to its statute, the order was awarded for...
. Maskhadov retired from the Soviet Army in 1992 with the rank of a colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
and returned to his native land. He was at the head of ChRI civil defence between late 1992 and November 1993.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, in the summer of 1993, Maskhadov took part in raids on the armed opposition against the government of Dzhokhar Dudayev in 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:...
, Nadterechny, and Gudermes
Gudermes
Gudermes is a town in the Chechen Republic, Russia, located on the Sunzha River east of Grozny. Population: 32,000 .Gudermes had a rural locality status until 1941. Later, it became a railroad junction between Rostov-on-Don, Baku, Astrakhan, and Mozdok. Gudermes is home for oil extraction...
districts. An unsuccessful anti-Dudayev mutiny
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
in November 1993 resulted in the dismissal of Viskhan Shakhabov as chief of staff of the Chechen armed forces, Maskhadov was appointed as the acting chief of staff and, in March 1994, as the chief of staff.
First Chechen War
In December 1994, when the First Chechen WarFirst Chechen War
The First Chechen War, also known as the War in Chechnya, was a conflict between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from December 1994 to August 1996...
broke out, he was the senior military figure on the Chechen side during the war and was widely seen as being instrumental to the Chechen victory over the Russian forces. As the First Deputy Chairman of the ChRI State Defence Council (ChRI President Dudayev was the chairman) and the chief of staff, Maskhadov organised defence of the Chechen capital during the Battle of Grozny
Battle of Grozny (November 1994)
November 1994 Battle of Grozny was a November 26, 1994, failed attempt by the Chechen opposition forces to seize the city of Grozny, the Chechen capital, and overthrow the separatist government of Dzhokhar Dudayev....
. Maskhadov commanded the city from the Presidential Palace in Grozny
Presidential Palace, Grozny
The presidential palace in Grozny was the building in Grozny, capital of Chechnya, which became a world-famous symbol during the early conflict in Chechnya, in which it became the key terrain symbolizing victory. The building was ruined by repeated artillery and air strikes...
, where on one occasion a Russian bunker buster
Bunker buster
A bunker buster is a bomb designed to penetrate hardened targets or targets buried deep underground.-Germany:Röchling shells were bunker-busting artillery shells, developed by German engineer August Cönders, based on the theory of increasing sectional density to improve penetration.They were tested...
bomb landed 20 meters from him but failed to explode. In February 1995, Dudayev promoted Aslan to Divisional General
Divisional General
Divisional General is a rank used in many armies to denote a rank of general, corresponding to command of a division. For convenience Divisional General is almost always translated into English as Major-General, the equivalent rank used by the UK, USA, etc., although this translation is, strictly...
.
From June 1995, Maskhadov took part in peace talks in Grozny
Grozny
Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
to resolve the crisis in Chechnya. In June 1996, at the negotiations in Nazran
Nazran
Nazran is a town in the Republic of Ingushetia, Russia. It served as the republic's capital in 1991–2000, until the town of Magas was specially built as the new capital. Nazran is the largest city of the republic: -General:...
, Ingushetia
Ingushetia
The Republic of Ingushetia is a federal subject of Russia , located in the North Caucasus region with its capital at Magas. In terms of area, the republic is the smallest of Russia's federal subjects except for the two federal cities, Moscow and Saint Petersburg...
, Maskhadov, on behalf of the ChRI administration, signed the Protocol of the Commission's Meeting on Ceasefire and Measures to Resolve the Armed Conflict in the CRI. In August 1996, after Grozny's seizure by Chechen units he repeatedly held talks with Alexander Lebed and on August 31, 1996, the signing of the Khasav-Yurt Accord
Khasav-Yurt Accord
Khasavyurt Accord was an agreement that marked the end of the First Chechen War, signed in Khasavyurt in Dagestan on August 30, 1996 between Alexander Lebed and Aslan Maskhadov....
took place, a ceasefire
Ceasefire
A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces...
agreement, and peace treaty which marked the end of the First Chechen War.
President of Chechnya
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
of Ichkeria
Ichkeria
Ichkeria can refer to:* Ichkeria , the historical Turkic name for a region more or less coinciding with the Republic of Chechnya* Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, the secessionist government of Chechnya...
, while he also remained Chief of Staff and Defence Minister
Defence minister
A defence minister is a person in a cabinet position in charge of a Ministry of Defence, which regulates the armed forces in some sovereign nations...
. Maskhadov nominated himself for President of Ichkeria
President of Ichkeria
This is a list of Presidents of the unrecognised Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, a pro-independence movement that controlled most of Chechnya from 1991 to 1999...
on December 3, 1996, for the January 1997 free democratic
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
presidential and parliamentary elections held in Chechnya under the aegis of the OSCE
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, human rights, freedom of the press and fair elections...
, running primarily against Shamil Basayev
Shamil Basayev
Shamil Salmanovich Basayev was a Chechen militant Islamist and a leader of the Chechen rebel movement.Starting as a field commander in the Transcaucasus, Basayev led guerrilla campaigns against the Russian troops for years, as well as launching mass-hostage takings of civilians, with his goal...
and Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev
Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev
Zelimkhan Abdumuslimovich Yandarbiyev was a Chechen writer and a politician, who served as acting president of the breakaway Chechen Republic of Ichkeria between 1996 and 1997...
.
The elections were conducted on the basis of the Chechen constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
adopted in March 1992, according to which the Chechen Republic was an independent state. Representatives of more than 20 countries, as well as the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
and the OSCE, attended the elections as observers.
Running with Vakha Arsanov
Vakha Arsanov
Vakha Arsanov was a former vice president in the Aslan Maskhadov's government of Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.-Early life:Vakha Arsanov was born in 1950 in Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic...
, who became his Vice-President, Mashkadov won a majority of 60% of the votes and was congratulated by the President of Russia Boris Yeltsin
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...
, who pledged to work towards rebuilding relations with Chechnya. Maskhadov was inaugurated on February 12, 1997, and at the same time he assumed the office of Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
and abolished the office of Defence Minister he had occupied since late 1996. Maskhadov remained commander-in-chief of the republican armed forces. On May 12, 1997, Maskhadov then attained the apex of his political career when he signed a peace treaty
Peace treaty
A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, that formally ends a state of war between the parties...
with Yeltsin at the Kremlin
Kremlin
A kremlin , same root as in kremen is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best-known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or metonymically to the government that is based there...
.
Between two Chechen wars
By the end of 1996, when Maskhadov assumed his office, nearly half a million people (40% of Chechya prewar population) had been internally displaced and lived in refugee camps or overcrowded villages. The economy was destroyed and the warlordWarlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
s had no intention to disband their militias. Under such circumstances, Maskhadov's political fortunes began to wane. His political standing within Chechnya became increasingly insecure as he lost control to Basayev and other warlord
Warlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
s. Even his Vice-President Arsanov became his political enemy. Just like in the years before the First Chechen War under Dudayev, the years of Chechen independence were notorious for organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
, including kidnapping
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
, leading to several public execution
Public Execution
Public Execution is a Mouse and the Traps retrospective album that has been released in both LP and CD formats. The LP has an unusually large number of tracks , while the CD includes 4 bonus tracks and catalogues almost all of the released music by Mouse and the Traps and their associated bands: ...
s of criminals.
Maskhadov attempted with only limited success to curb the growth of Wahhabism
Wahhabism
Wahhabism is a religious movement or a branch of Islam. It was developed by an 18th century Muslim theologian from Najd, Saudi Arabia. Ibn Abdul Al-Wahhab advocated purging Islam of what he considered to be impurities and innovations...
and other fundamentalist Muslim
Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism is a term used to describe religious ideologies seen as advocating a return to the "fundamentals" of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Definitions of the term vary. According to Christine L...
groups supported by Basayev, producing a split in the Chechen separatist movement between Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism is a term used to describe religious ideologies seen as advocating a return to the "fundamentals" of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Definitions of the term vary. According to Christine L...
and Chechen
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...
nationalists
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
. In February 1999, as a concession to radical islamists, Maskhadov introduced Islamic Sharia law
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
. The Sharia courts that were established sentenced people to death, flogging, executing people for crimes such as adultery.
Maskhadov survived several assassination
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...
attempts on his life on 23 July 1998, and March 21 and April 10, 1999, in which the attackers used anti-tank missiles and bombs. Russian secret services were officially blamed.
Second Chechen War
In the summer of 1999, he condemned an attempt by Basayev and Ibn Al-KhattabIbn al-Khattab
Samir Saleh Abdullah Al-Suwailem , more commonly known as Emir Khattab meaning Commander Khattab, or Leader Khattab, and also known as Habib Abdul Rahman, was a Muslim guerilla fighter and financier working with Chechen Mujahideen in the First Chechen War...
to spread war to the neighboring republic of Dagestan
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
(known as the Invasion of Dagestan). This raid, and the Russian Apartment Bombings
Russian apartment bombings
The Russian apartment bombings were a series of explosions that hit four apartment blocks in the Russian cities of Buynaksk, Moscow, and Volgodonsk in September 1999, killing 293 people and injuring 651. The explosions occurred in Buynaksk on 4 September, Moscow on 9 and 13 September, and...
, were both blamed on the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. On October 1, 1999, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
declared the authority of President Maskhadov and his parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
illegitimate. Putin sent Russian forces into Chechnya, and his promise of a quick and decisive victory propelled him to the Russian Presidency.
On October 11, 1999, Maskhadov outlined a peace plan offering a crackdown on renegade warlords, the offer was rejected by the Russian side. In response, President Maskhadov declared a gazavat
Ghazw
Ghazi or ghazah is an Arabic term that means "to raid/foray." From it evolved the word "Ghazwa" which specifically refers to a battle led by the Islamic prophet Muhammad.In English language literature the word often appears as razzia, deriving from French, although it probably...
(holy war
Religious war
A religious war; Latin: bellum sacrum; is a war caused by, or justified by, religious differences. It can involve one state with an established religion against another state with a different religion or a different sect within the same religion, or a religiously motivated group attempting to...
) to confront the approaching Russian army. Soon, martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
was declared in Ichkeria and reservists were called, and the building of his Presidential Palace was one of a supposed targets of the disastrous Grozny ballistic missile attack
Grozny ballistic missile attack
The Grozny ballistic missile attack was a wave of devastating Russian ballistic missile strikes on the Chechen capital Grozny on October 21, 1999, early in the Second Chechen War. The attack killed at least 118 people according to initial reports, mostly civilians, or at least 137 immediate dead...
on October 23, 1999.
Maskhadov was one of the main commanders in the Battle of Grozny (1999–2000)
Battle of Grozny (1999–2000)
The 1999–2000 battle of Grozny was the siege and assault of the Chechen capital Grozny by Russian forces, lasting from late 1999 to early 2000. The siege and fighting left the capital devastated...
along with Shamil Basayev
Shamil Basayev
Shamil Salmanovich Basayev was a Chechen militant Islamist and a leader of the Chechen rebel movement.Starting as a field commander in the Transcaucasus, Basayev led guerrilla campaigns against the Russian troops for years, as well as launching mass-hostage takings of civilians, with his goal...
, Ruslan Gelayev, Ibn Al-Khattab
Ibn al-Khattab
Samir Saleh Abdullah Al-Suwailem , more commonly known as Emir Khattab meaning Commander Khattab, or Leader Khattab, and also known as Habib Abdul Rahman, was a Muslim guerilla fighter and financier working with Chechen Mujahideen in the First Chechen War...
, Aslambek Ismailov, & Khunkarpasha Israpilov. Aslan Maskhadov along with his men launched daring counter-attacks against the Russian troops while fighting in Grozny
Grozny
Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
and also effectively used the sewer systems to attack Russian troops from behind. After a meeting with top rebel commanders Maskhadov and others agreed to withdraw from Grozny and continue to attack Russian forces in the city's and towns surrounding the city. Maskhadov was the first to withdraw because of his importance to the rebel cause and because he was the official President of Chechnya. As Maskhadov and his men retreated they set up vast amounts of booby traps and landmines to hinder Russian forces and make most of Grozny impassable.
After Chechen forces' withdrawal from devastated capital following another battle for the city, Maskhadov returned to life as a guerrilla leader, living in hiding as Russia's second most wanted man after Basayev, with Russia placing a $10 million bounty
Bounty (reward)
A bounty is a payment or reward often offered by a group as an incentive for the accomplishment of a task by someone usually not associated with the group. Bounties are most commonly issued for the capture or retrieval of a person or object. They are typically in the form of money...
on his capture. He was seen as the official political leader of the separatist forces during the war, but it is unclear what kind of a military role he played. Maskhadov offered his readiness for unconditional peace talks with Moscow several times in 2000 alone, continuing in the following years, but his appeals for the political solution were always ignored by the Russian side.
Maskhadov advocated armed resistance to what he saw as a Russian occupation but condemned attacks on civilians. He allegedly supported the assassination of pro-Russian Chechen President Akhmad Kadyrov
Akhmad Kadyrov
Hajji Akhmad Abdulkhamidovich Kadyrov , also spelled Akhmat, was the Chief Mufti of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria in the 1990s during and after the First Chechen War...
in Chechnya, whilst condemning the Russian assassination of Chechen separatist ex-President Yandarbiyev in Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
in 2004. Maskhadov often denied responsibility for the increasingly brutal terrorist acts against Russian civilians by Basayev's followers, continually issuing denunciations of such incidents through spokesmen abroad, such as Akhmed Zakayev
Akhmed Zakayev
Akhmed Khalidovich Zakayev is the former Deputy Prime Minister and the current Prime Minister of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria , which is unrecognised by other countries...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. However, on October 24, 2002, radio communications were intercepted from Maskhadov's messages wherein he called for intensification of terrorist activities and sabotage in Russian territory. Evidence for Maskhadov's complicity in the 2002 Moscow theater hostage crisis
Moscow theater hostage crisis
The Moscow theater hostage crisis, also known as the 2002 Nord-Ost siege, was the seizure of the crowded Dubrovka Theater on 23 October 2002 by some 40 to 50 armed Chechens who claimed allegiance to the Islamist militant separatist movement in Chechnya. They took 850 hostages and demanded the...
was provided by its two principal perpetrators, Movsar Barayev and Abu Said. Although he initially denied responsibility for the 2004 Nazran raid
2004 Nazran raid
The Nazran raid was a large-scale raid carried out in the Republic of Ingushetia, Russia, on the night of June 21-22, 2004, by a large number of mostly Chechen and Ingush militants led by the Chechen commander Shamil Basayev...
, in which 98 police officers/troops were killed, in July, 2004 Maskhadov publicly accepted responsibility for the attacks. In the same month, Maskahdov promised similar attacks would happen, and vowed the winner of Chechnya's upcoming presidential election would be illegitimate and if necessary attacked. He described the rebels behind the Beslan school siege as "madmen" driven out of their senses by Russian acts of brutality and called the terrorist attack an atrocity.
On January 15, 2005, Maskhadov issued a special order to stop all military operations except those in self-defense, both inside and outside Chechnya, until the end of February (the date marking the anniversary of the Stalin's Vainakh deportations of 1944) as a gesture of good will, and again called for a negotiated end to the Chechen conflict. Umar Khambiev, his designated negotiator said the separatists were no longer seeking independence, but only "guarantees for the existence of the Chechen nation". This surprise unilateral ceasefire
Ceasefire
A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces...
was supported by Basayev but flatly rejected by the Russian and pro-Russian leaders who once again refused to negotiate. Maskhadov's order to temporarily cease the offensive actions was largely followed by the rebel movement, except in Dagestan.
Death
On March 8, 2005, less than a month after Maskhadov announced the cease-fire, Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) head Nikolay Patrushev announced that special forces attached to the FSB had "today carried out an operation in the settlement of Tolstoy-Yurt, as a result of which the international jihadist and leader of armed groups Maskhadov was killed, and his closest comrades-in-arms detained". He said the special operations unit had wanted to take Maskhadov alive for interrogation, but claim that they killed him accidentally with a grenadeGrenade
A grenade is a small explosive device that is projected a safe distance away by its user. Soldiers called grenadiers specialize in the use of grenades. The term hand grenade refers any grenade designed to be hand thrown. Grenade Launchers are firearms designed to fire explosive projectile grenades...
thrown into a bunker where Maskhadov was hiding. Akhmed Zakayev
Akhmed Zakayev
Akhmed Khalidovich Zakayev is the former Deputy Prime Minister and the current Prime Minister of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria , which is unrecognised by other countries...
, one of his closest allies who acted as his spokesman and foreign minister, told a Russian radio station that it was probable that Maskhadov had indeed been killed; he indicated later that a new Chechen leader could be chosen within days. Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
awarded those responsible for the killings with medals. Shortly following Maskhadov's death, the Chechen rebel council announced that Abdul-Halim Sadulayev had assumed the leadership.
Four Chechens, Vakhit Murdashev, Viskhan Hadzhimuradov, Skanarbek Yusupov and Ilias Iriskhanov, were captured by the special operation. According to the ballistic evidence at their trial in the Supreme Court of Chechen Republic, Maskhadov was killed by a shot from a pistol of Viskhan Hadzhimuradov, his nephew and bodyguard. Hadzhimuradov testified that he does not remember whether he shot Maskhadov or not since he was stunned by an explosion but after the capture Hadzhimuradov reportedly said: "My uncle always told me to shoot him if he is wounded and his capture is immenient. He said that if he is taken prisoner, he would be mistreated like Saddam Hussein had been".
Unmarked grave
On April 24, 2006, the General Procurator's Office of Russia officially refused to turn the remains of Aslan Maskhadov over to his relatives for burial. The refusal was described as legal:Maskhadov A. A., in connection with terrorism, was criminally responsible for many separate serious crimes on the territory of the Russian Federation. Taking this into account, it was decided to suppress Maskhadov's activities and Maskhadov was being pursued for our protection. The burial of such persons is carried out in accordance with the rules concerning the burial of those whose death was a result of the suppression of their terrorist actions, affirmed by the government of the Russian Federation on 20 March 2003, in Order No. 164. In this case, the body is not handed over for burial, and the location of the burial is not communicated.
Maskhadov's family has been campaigning for the release of his remains or a disclosure of what happened to his body.
Family life
He married at the age of 17. His wife Kusama holds a graduate degree in teaching. They had two children: a son, Anzor, who took part in military action during the First Chechen WarFirst Chechen War
The First Chechen War, also known as the War in Chechnya, was a conflict between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, fought from December 1994 to August 1996...
, and a daughter, Fatima.
Biographies
- Biography on the site of the ChRI Ministry for Foreign Affairs
- Biography on the Chechen.org site (in Russian)
Interviews
- Ekspress-Khronika (Express Chronicles), No. 8 (611), 26 February 2000, p. 1.
- Komsomolskaya Pravda, 18 March 2000, p. 7.
- Kommersant, 21 April 2000, p. 1.
- Kommersant, 22 April 2000, p. 3.
- Kommersant, 27 January 2001, p. 1, 3.
- 1999 interview by Marie Bennigsen-BroxupMarie Bennigsen-BroxupMarie Bennigsen-Broxup is one of the leading European experts on the Caucasus and Central Asia, with particular emphasis on Muslim communities within these regions. She is a daughter of the Russian émigré scholar of Islam, Alexandre Bennigsen...
posted on the Small Wars Journal web site - The last interview Maskhadov gave before his death to RFE/RL
- Controversial interview Maskhadov gave to Boris Berezovsky's KommersantKommersantKommersant is a commerce-oriented newspaper published in Russia. , the circulation was 131,000.- History :The newspaper was initially published in 1909, and it was closed down following the Bolshevik seizure of power and the introduction of censorship in 1917.In 1989, with the onset of press...
newspaper
Reports on Maskhadov's death
- New York Times: Russian Forces, in Raid, Kill Leader of Chechnya Separatists
- RFE/RL: Reports Say Chechen Leader Maskhadov Killed
- Christian Science Monitor: Killing of Chechen leader may empower hard-liners
- The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
: Chechnya loses its Yasser Arafat - CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
: Maskhadov: Chechnya's defiant ex-leader - BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
: Chechen leader Maskhadov 'killed' - NTVNTV RussiaNTV is a Russian television channel. As a subsidiary of Vladimir Gusinsky's company Media-Most, it was a pioneer in the post-Soviet independent television media, but was later taken over by state-owned Gazprom.- History :...
: Масхадова случайно взорвали в бункере (ФОТО) (in RussianRussian languageRussian 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...
) - ReutersReutersReuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
: Maskhadov's Son Vows to Continue Dad's Chechen Work - KommersantKommersantKommersant is a commerce-oriented newspaper published in Russia. , the circulation was 131,000.- History :The newspaper was initially published in 1909, and it was closed down following the Bolshevik seizure of power and the introduction of censorship in 1917.In 1989, with the onset of press...
: Aslan Maskhadov Killed (includes timeline of attempts on Maskhadov's life) - BBC News: Russians 'paid Maskhadov bounty'
- Thanks from the new Czar A comment on the assassination of Chechen leader Aslan Maskhadov by Andre GlucksmannAndré GlucksmannAndré Glucksmann is a French philosopher and writer, and member of the French new philosophers.-Early years:André Glucksmann was born in 1937, in Boulogne-Billancourt, the son of Ashkenazi Jewish parents from Romania and Czechoslovakia. He studied in Lyon, and later enrolled at École normale...
Obituaries
- Obituary from the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
- Obituary from The TelegraphThe Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
- Obituary from The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
- Obituary from The EconomistThe EconomistThe Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
- Editorial from the Washington Post
- Obituary from Islamica MagazineIslamica MagazineIslamica Magazine was a quarterly magazine in the United States with editorial offices in Amman, Jordan, Cambridge, MA and London, UK., dedicated to presenting various perspectives and opinions on Islam and the Muslim world...