Russian National Guard announces the killing of 250 militants in the North Caucasus over the last five years
The Russian National Guard has reported on the killing of 250 suspected militants in the North Caucasus over the last five years, from 2016 to 2021. The department also announced the liquidation of 29 training bases for illegal armed groups.
"From 2016 to 2021, the United Group of Forces carried out over four thousand special operations in the North Caucasus region of the Russian Federation, during which 250 militants were liquidated, 29 training bases for illegal armed groups and 193 militant camps as well as 517 caches were discovered and destroyed," said the press service of the Russian National Guard.
The Russian National Guard also stated that over these five years, 4,500 firearms were seized, as well as about 300,000 rounds of ammunition of various calibers and more than a ton of explosives.
In April, the head of the Federal Service of the National Guard Troops Viktor Zolotov announced a decrease in the level of the terrorist threat in the North Caucasus.
The Russian National Guard has been heading the united grouping of troops in the North Caucasus since 2017.
In March 2021, the plenipotentiary of the President of Russia in the North Caucasus Federal District Yuri Chaika reported on special operations in the North Caucasus. According to him, in 2020, the security forces carried out 1,500 special operations in the region, as a result of which 45 militants were killed. Another 113 members of illegal groups, allegedly planning terrorist attacks, attacks on law enforcement officers and civilians, were detained.
Despite the statements of the Russian leadership on the elimination of terrorism in the North Caucasus, shootings with the police and detentions of those accused of participation in one or another terrorist organization are a regular occurence in the region. Often, defendants in such cases report unlawful persecution and torture.