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Yangulbaev case

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The Yangulbaev case (Russian: Дело Янгулбаевых) is a socio-political scandal that erupted in Russia in early 2022. Lawyer of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture Abubakar Yangulbaev announced the disappearance of several dozen of his relatives in Chechnya.[1] After that, the Chechen security forces forcibly took his mother Zarema Musayeva (wife of a retired federal judge) from Nizhny Novgorod to Grozny,[2] where she became a defendant in a criminal case and was sent to a pre-trial detention center. Abubakar's brother, Ibragim, was put on the federal wanted list, his father and sister hastily left Russia.[3] The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, said that members of the Yangulbaev family should be detained and punished, “and if they resist, then they should be destroyed as accomplices of terrorists”; he later demanded from foreign governments that the fugitives be returned to Chechnya.[4][5][6]

Abubakar Yangulbaev became a human rights activist and lawyer for the Committee for the Prevention of Torture. He regularly made sharp statements about the leadership of Chechnya, about the persecution to which his family was subjected. He was suspected of running the opposition telegram channel 1ADAT, and in 2020 Abubakar's house was searched, but this had no consequences.[7]

On February 2, 2022, a rally was held in Grozny, the participants of which burned and trampled on the portraits of the Yangulbaevs; according to official figures, there were about 400,000 protesters, compared to less than 300,000 inhabitants in Grozny.[8]

The European Union called on the Russian authorities to immediately release Musaeva.[9]

Mussaeva was originally sentenced to 15 days of administrative detention for "petty hooliganism", after which she was then charged for assaulting a government official; she was later also charged with fraud.[10]

Following Mussaeva's disappearance, a spokesperson for the Kremlin appeared to deny that the Chechen police had abducted her, stating the account of her abduction sounded "fictitious".[11]

Mussaeva is serving a five-year prison sentence on false charges brought in retaliation for her exiled sons' public opposition to Ramzan Kadyrov.[12] She was found guilty on 4 July 2023 at a court in Grozny and sentenced to detention at a penal colony. That same day, masked individuals attacked Novaya Gazeta journalist Elena Milashina and lawyer Alexander Nemov, who had been attending the trial.[10][13]

Mussaeva has repeatedly been refused parole.[12] On 5 March 2024, the Fifth Cassation Court in Pyatigorsk reduced Mussaeva's sentence to 4 years and nine months. She is serving her sentence at a penal colony in Argun, Chechnya.[10][14]

In September 2024, the Chechen Supreme Court reduced her sentence by six months and transferred her to a colony settlement rather than a correctional colony.[15]

It has been alleged that in detention Mussaeva has been given inadequate healthcare pertaining to her diabetes which hampers her mobility. In October 2024 she was admitted to a Chechen endicronology dispensary. In April 2024, the state medical commission in Chechnya downgraded Mussaeva's diagnosis to "diabetes without complications" despite her having been admitted to hospital the previous month due to a decline in her vision and lumps appearing on her body; human rights organisations reported that the downgrade was part of the "systemic abuse" Mussaeva had experienced in prison.[15]

In November 2024, Russian authorities opened up a new investigation into Mussaeva, accusing her of "disorganising the activities of the penal colony" after being accused of assaulting a Federal Penitentiary Service officer. Her sentence could be extended by an additional five years after it was alleged she had scratched the neck of an officer while being transported to a hospital appointment.[10][16] Mussaeva denied the incident and her lawyer stated the officer had fabricated the incident.[16] Her request to be released from pre-trial detention was declined.[17]

The International Federation for Human Rights, in addition to its Russian member organisations the Anti-Discrimination Centre Memorial, Human Rights Defence Centre Memorial, and Citizens' Watch, called on Russian authorities to drop the charges against Mussaeva, ensure her immediate release, and to cease its persecution of critics of Kadyrov and his relatives.[10]

Team Against Torture called for Mussaeva to be released and to receive proper medical treatment, stating her ongoing detention reflected a broader pattern of repression in Chechnya.[15]

The European Court of Human Rights ordered Russia to pay damages to Mussaeva and her family over her arbitrary arrest.[16][18]

Amnesty International urged Russian authorities to intervene following Mussaeva's abduction.[19]

References

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  1. ^ "Юрист северокавказского филиала "Комитета против пыток" заявил о похищении около 40 своих родственников в Чечне". Новая газета. 18 September 1984.
  2. ^ ""Комитет против пыток" подал срочную жалобу в ЕСПЧ по правилу 39 по факту похищения жены федерального судьи Янгулбаева". Новая газета.
  3. ^ "Судья в отставке Сайди Янгулбаев и его дочь покинули Россию". 23 January 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-02-04. Retrieved 2022-02-03.
  4. ^ Masked assailants attack a journalist and a lawyer in Russia's Chechnya province
  5. ^ "Депутат Госдумы Адам Делимханов поклялся отрезать головы родственникам судьи Янгулбаева и тем, кто переведет его угрозы на русский язык". The Insider. 2022-02-01. Archived from the original on 2022-02-05. Retrieved 2022-02-03.
  6. ^ "«Отрывая вам головы». Руководство Чечни снова угрожает семье Янгулбаевых". BBC News Русская Служба. Archived from the original on 2022-02-04. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  7. ^ Чем семья Янгулбаевых вызвала ненависть Рамзана Кадырова и почему переехала из Чечни в Нижний Новгород. Репортаж NN.RU
  8. ^ В Чечне на митинг против семьи Янгулбаевых вышли более 400 тысяч человек
  9. ^ "Евросоюз призвал Россию освободить похищенную властями Чечни жену судьи Зарему Мусаеву". Радио Свобода. 24 January 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-02-03. Retrieved 2022-02-03.
  10. ^ a b c d e "Russia: Stop the criminal prosecution of Zarema Musayeva". International Federation for Human Rights. 2024-12-02. Archived from the original on 2025-06-13. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  11. ^ Lokshina, Tanya (2022-01-21). "Chechen Police Abduct a Woman in Retaliation Against Her Sons". Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 2025-03-28. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  12. ^ a b "World Report 2025" (PDF). Human Rights Watch. 2025. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2025-07-28. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  13. ^ "Mother of Chechen activists ordered to remain in pretrial detention despite ailing health". Novaya Gazeta. 2023-07-04. Archived from the original on 2025-07-14. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  14. ^ "Зарему Мусаеву госпитализировали – адвокат добивался этого больше месяца". Kavkaz Realii (in Russian). 2024-10-21. Archived from the original on 2025-06-19. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  15. ^ a b c "Jailed Chechen Political Prisoner Zarema Musayeva Hospitalized". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 2024-10-22. Archived from the original on 2025-07-11. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  16. ^ a b c "Prosecutors Request Additional 4-Year Prison Sentence for Mother of Chechen Dissidents". The Moscow Times. 2025-07-24. Archived from the original on 2025-07-24. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  17. ^ "Mother of Chechen activists ordered to remain in pretrial detention despite ailing health". Novaya Gazeta. 2025-05-16. Archived from the original on 2025-07-14. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  18. ^ "European Court of Human Rights awards Zarema Musaeva €52,000 for her 'revenge' jailing". Novaya Gazeta. 2024-05-28. Archived from the original on 2025-07-14. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  19. ^ "Russia: Federal authorities must ensure the release of Zarema Musaeva and stop intimidation against Ramzan Kadyrov's critics". Amnesty International. 2022-01-24. Archived from the original on 2025-06-04. Retrieved 2025-08-03.


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