Salambek Khadzhiyev accuses military men of cruelty and pillage

Julia Kalinina

"Moskovsky Komsomolets", February 2, 1995, p. 1

The relative silence of several days in Grozny seems to end now. Now the border in the city goes alone Sunzha river. The left bank is nearly fully controlled by federal army, the right bank being in Dudayev's hands. Columns of heavy armoured vehicles and trucks with ammunition are moving to the city from Mozdok. Columns of empty trucks are moving back.

An incredible amount of military vehicles is situated in Tolstoy-Jurt village. "Grad" ("Hail") bombardment units are used to bomb Grozny from here: the village is just 10 km far from Grozny. On Monday evening, Dudaev's army attacked a column of armoured vehicles of Pacific Fleet near Samashki village, on the border with Ingushetia. At least three are killed and nine people are wounded. Bodies were transferred to Red Cross. Massive bombardment of Samashki started in the afternoon. About eight thousand people live in the village, many of them being refugees from Grozny. Those are unprotected citizens, who must pay off attacks of militarists.

Chairman of (pro-Russian) government of people's revival Salambek Khadzhiyev left for Znamensky village to Grozny by helicopter on Tuesday. Usually he lives and works there at cannery, that has become Russian military base. In his interview to journalists of "Moskovsky Komsomolets" Khadzhiyev said, that as soon as a region of Grozny is newly liberated, he immediately appoints a head of local administration and opens a department of humanitarian help. Salambek Khadzhiyev has already appointed four heads of local administration. As he thinks, refugees may start returning to Grozny in a week, but they will have to live in basements. Besides, Khadzhiyev's team gathers dead bodies around the city. Chechens were transferred to elders of nearest villages, Russians being buried near the cannery. Because of the thaw, they could not move some of perished to the cemetery and buried them at places they were found.

The war spreads from Grozny to the whole Chechnia. It is obvious. Khadzhiyev confirmed this and explained reasons. At first, artillery and aircraft bombardments. The population refuses to realize they are required. People can not understand why must they die. People think that Russians have started an offensive. As a natural result, the population aspires to get armed and to defend themselves.

The second reason is pillage. "Liberators" behave badly. During conversations with population of "opposing" Nadterechny region, who are categorically against Dudayev, and are considered a stronghold of Russia, we have learned things that shook our mind. For example, on Monday, in Nadterechnoye village, "Ural" truck driven by drunk Russian soldier has lost the road and jammed a man and a woman to death. After that, the truck run to the highway and moved further to its business. Before our car standing on the central street of the village, an armoured vehicle moved with soldiers on it, shooting into the sky just to amuse themselves. In Znamenskoye village we have seen a 17 years old boy, who arrived from "filtration" camp in Mozdok. The boy has lost his sight of beating and now is in shock.

According to population of anti-Dudayev region, Russian army commits a real pillage. Any man (even militia captain, MP, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ingushetia) may be stopped on the street and sent to "filtration camp". Until his personality identified. During the identification, according to those who has been in the camp, they are beaten, interrogated, and made to sign a recognition of participating military bodies.

In Nadterechnoye, a teacher who worked in Grozny many years, has said, that she "waited for Russians as for liberators". She hoped, that soldiers will bring the city to the order, and was sitting in the basement with her family until her part of the city was occupied bu Russians. But... Then she had to leave. "We are mot humans for them."

The whole trick with restoration of constitutional order had a goal to defend those people. The result was the opposite: those people have no idea HOW TO DEFEND THEMSELVES FROM "DEFENDERS".

Mozdok -- Narzanj