War in Syria. Photo: Freedom House https://www.flickr.com

10 February 2017, 18:35

Witnesses in Usmanov’s case refute investigators’ version

Abdurakhman Usmanov, accused for involvement in the IS, was not a supporter of radical Islam; and defence witnesses saw him in Turkey when, according to investigators, he was in Syria.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that the case of Abdurakhman Usmanov, a resident of Dagestan, is considered by the North-Caucasian District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don. According to investigators, in summer of 2014 he came to Syria and joined a terrorist training centre of the "Islamic State" (IS) (banned in Russia, – note of the "Caucasian Knot"), and up to October 2015, he guarded militants’ positions and gathered money for them.

All the three witnesses – an entrepreneur Satinat Gazimagomedova; Khadizhat Gazimagomedova, the mother of Ali Gaziev; and Denis Kopytov, an acquaintance of the defendant – have stated that Usmanov was not a supporter of radical Islam and had not raised the topic of war in Syria. Also, they know nothing about that he ever went there.

The advocate Vladimir Gladkov has noted that the prosecution’s version is based only on the defendant’s own confessions, which he has rejected, and on testimonies of "earlier convicted IS supporters, who had allegedly seen him in Syria."

In the opinion of Alexei Malashenko, an expert of the Moscow Carnegie Centre, so far, the people, who have returned to Russia from Syria, are of no direct threat. Nevertheless, according to his version, they may be hazardous, should the social situation in Russia aggravate.

In Northern Caucasus, the potential for recruiting people to the "Islamic State" is very limited, said Igor Dobaev, a Professor at the Southern Federal University (SFU).

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.

All news
НАСТОЯЩИЙ МАТЕРИАЛ (ИНФОРМАЦИЯ) ПРОИЗВЕДЕН И РАСПРОСТРАНЕН ИНОСТРАННЫМ АГЕНТОМ ООО “МЕМО”, ЛИБО КАСАЕТСЯ ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТИ ИНОСТРАННОГО АГЕНТА ООО “МЕМО”.

September 18, 2024 23:47

  • ECtHR awards compensation to Ingush activist Zarifa Sautieva

    The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found that the Russian authorities violated the article on the prohibition of torture and inhuman treatment in relation to Ingush activist Zarifa Sautieva. The activist was awarded 1000 euros in compensation, although Russia does not consider itself obligated to comply with the decisions of the European Court.

September 18, 2024 23:23

  • Court dismisses appeal of activist Melikhova against fine for her verse

    A court dismissed all the arguments of the defence and upheld the decision to fine Marina Melikhova, an activist from Kuban, whose verse the law enforcement bodies recognized as discrediting the Russian Armed Forces. Marina Melikhova, who does not have the money to pay the fine, intends to file an appeal against the court’s decision.

September 18, 2024 22:40

  • Two natives of Northern Caucasus injured in shootout near “Wildberries” office in Moscow

    A shootout took place near an office of the “Wildberries” Company in the centre of Moscow. As a result, at least one person has been killed and several others have been wounded, sources report. Among the victims have been Abubakar Mestoev and Umar Chichaev, mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters from Northern Caucasus, reports Shamil Khadulaev, the chair of the Public Oversight Commission (POC) of Dagestan.

September 18, 2024 21:47

  • In Volgograd, court recognizes absence of HIV therapy in prison hospital

    The Central District Court of Volgograd awarded prisoner Ruslan Mitrofan compensation in the amount of 1000 roubles, recognizing that the administration of a prison hospital in Volgograd violated the prisoner’s right to receive medical care by not providing him with an HIV medicine. Meanwhile, Ruslan Mitrofan requested the compensation in the amount of 100,000 roubles.

September 18, 2024 20:29

News archive