Chechen Prime Minister in Exile: Russian Special Services Behind 1999 Apartment Bombings
Akhmed Zakayev, prime minister of the Chechen Republic in exile, told Delfi that the Russian special services orchestrated the 1999 apartment bombings, the Dubrovka theater siege, and the Beslan school attack, using Chechens as a cover.
In an interview with Delfi, Akhmed Zakayev, the prime minister of the Chechen Republic in exile, made serious allegations against the Russian special services. According to Zakayev, there is solid evidence that the 1999 apartment bombings in Buynaksk, Volgodonsk, and Moscow were organized by the Russian special services. These bombings served as a pretext for the Second Chechen War, and Chechens had no involvement, he claimed.
Zakayev also stated that the terrorist attacks at the Dubrovka theater in 2002 and the Beslan school in 2004 were also carried out by Russian special services, with Chechens used merely as a "cover." He noted that individuals who attempted to uncover the truth—such as Alexander Litvinenko, Sergei Yushenkov, Boris Nemtsov, Anna Politkovskaya, and Yuri Shchekochikhin—were either killed or poisoned. Zakayev cited living witnesses and materials from analyst Andrei Illarionov to support his claims.
He highlighted the role of investigator Igor Krasnov, who handled the most high-profile cases and is now Russia's Prosecutor General. Regarding the Kadyrov family, Zakayev described Akhmad and Ramzan Kadyrov as Putin's collaborators, alleging that after the 2004 sham referendum, 36,000 Chechens were killed and 42,000 children were killed or maimed. He characterized Chechnya as a "concentration camp."
Zakayev further argued that Putin has lost control over his "bandits," though he did not elaborate. He refrained from commenting on Ramzan Kadyrov's health condition, calling it a complex issue.
