Kadyrov’s foundation offers payments for families that name newborns after Islamic prophet

The Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation (named after the former Chechen leader, father of Ramzan Kadyrov) is offering to pay 100,000 rubles ($1,265) to each family that names children born on the night of October 29 after the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his family members. This was announced by the Chechen government’s press service. 

“The action is held annually in honor of the birthday of the prophet [Muhammad], but this year it will become more widespread. Last year only boys received payments,” Chechnya’s Information Minister Akhmed Dudayev told the state news agency TASS. 

Dudayev specified that this year, money will also be paid to families who name their newborns after the family members and closest associates of the Islamic prophet. To give an example, the Chechen government’s website indicated that Muhammad had three sons and four daughters.

According to Dudayev, as quoted by TASS, the Kadyrov Foundation’s initiative “is especially significant for us in the context of recent events [in France].”

On October 27, Head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov called French President Emmanuel Macron a “terrorist” on his Telegram channel, in connection with the murder of history teacher Samuel Paty in France. The teacher was allegedly killed by an 18-year-old Chechen after he showed students cartoons of the Islamic prophet Muhammad during a lecture on freedom of speech.

In response to Kadyrov’s comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that “the head of a subject of the Russian Federation cannot engage in foreign policy.” Kadyrov responded by publishing a post agreeing with this statement, while noting that he expressed “his opinion regarding the French authorities as a Muslim and not as a politician.”