Chechen blogger Tumso Abudrakhmanov, whose death was reported last week, is alive, according to Prime Minister of the separatist Chechen Republic of Ichkeria Akhmed Zakayev. The publication Kavkaz.Realii reported the news.
Abdurakhmanov is under the protection of the Swedish police, says a spokesperson for the government of the self-proclaimed Chechen Republic of Ichkeria in exile. The spokesperson referenced their “own sources of information.” He did not specify why Abdurakhmanov is under police protection.
The first report of Abdurakhmanov’s death appeared on December 1. Human rights activists said at the time that he and his brother had ceased communicating. Chechen opposition Telegram channel 1ADAT and Radio Liberty, citing Abdurakhmanov’s associates, reported his murder a few days later. Police in Sweden, where Abdurakhmanov has lived for several years, have not confirmed his murder.
Publication Kavkazsky Uzel notes that, as of December 8, neither the blogger’s relatives, nor Swedish police, nor Chechen authorities had confirmed reports that Abdurakhmanov was murdered.
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Tumso Abdurakhmanov is known for his outspoken criticism of Chechen authorities. He fled Russia in 2015, following a conflict with a relative of Ramzan Kadyrov. Abdurakhmanov was granted political asylum in Sweden. Attempts were made on the lives of Tumso Abdurakhmanov and his brother in 2020 and 2021. In December 2021, Abdurakhmanov reported that nine of his relatives in Chechnya had been kidnapped.
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