| 2014 Grozny clashes | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofInsurgency in the North Caucasus | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Caucasus Emirate | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Ramzan Kadyrov | Aslan Byutukayev[1] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 14 policemen killed 36 policemen wounded 1 civilian killed | At least 11 killed | ||||||
On 4 December 2014, a group of armed militants of thejihadist organizationCaucasus Emirate[2] attacked atraffic police checkpoint outside the city ofGrozny,Chechnya,Russia. The militants then entered the city and occupied the "Press House" building in the city center and a nearby school.
According to the BBC, theIslamists had claimed to have launched asuicide attack in response to purported attacks bysecurity forces on Muslim women.[3]
On 4 December 2014, a group of Islamist militants, in three vehicles, killed three traffic policemen, after the latter had attempted to stop them at a checkpoint in the outskirts ofGrozny.[4] The militants then occupied a press building and an abandoned school, located in the center of the city. Launching acounter-terrorism operation, security forces, with the use of armored vehicles, attempted to storm the buildings and a firefight ensued.[5]
14 policemen, 11 militants and 1 civilian were killed. Additionally 36 policemen were wounded in the incident. The Press House was also burned and severely damaged in the incident.[6][7]
It has been suggested, byThe New York Times andThe Washington Post writers, that the timing of the attack purposefully coincided with presidentVladimir Putin's delivery of an annual state-of-the-nation speech in Moscow.[8][9]
In modern times, the conflict (with the first uprising in 1785)[10] has included theFirst Chechen War (1994–1996), theWar of Dagestan (1999), theSecond Chechen War (1999–2009), the2002 Grozny truck bombing, and theInsurgency in the North Caucasus (2009–present). Recent events have included the2010 Chechen Parliament attack, and the2014 Grozny bombing. The 2004Beslan school hostage crisis begun by Chechen and Ingush terrorists ended with the deaths of 385 people.
Russian president, Vladimir Putin, responded in his annual speech, that "these 'rebels' have shown up in Chechnya again. I'm sure, the local law enforcement authorities will take proper care of them."[8] The head of Chechnya,Ramzan Kadyrov, said, the "bandits" had died "a dog's death".[11]
OnKavkaz Center website, a Chechen fighter creditedAslan Byutukayev for the attacks, saying: "There are already results. Allah killed them with our hands."[12]
Time magazine noted, that Putin's state-of-the-nation speech was greeted at best with polite applause, as Kremlin criticCarl Bildt,Sweden's former Minister of Foreign Affairs, tweeted: "Street battle in Grozny? Moscow should have more pressing priorities than destabilising Ukraine."[13]
