Dagestan: After Disappearances, Only Death
The deputy prosecutor of the Dagestan Repulic, Magomed Dibirov, announced
that on the 11th of Septmber 2009, not far from the Sirtych Tabasaranskii
region of Dagestan a skirmish had occurred. During the encounter,
four insurgents were killed. They turned out to be Mirza Kasimov
(September 6th, 2009 abducted by people in civilian's clothing in the Derbent
Republic of Dagestan: http://www.memo.ru/2009/09/14/1409094.htm)
Sirazhurdin Umarov (September 9th, 2009 in Derbent, Dagestan set off to
meet with a police officer and failed to return: http://www.memo.ru/hr/hotpoints/caucas1/msg/2009/09/m175893.htm),
Nariman Mamedyarov disappeared on the 10th of September 2009 in Makhachkala,
Dagestan: http://www.memo.ru/hr/hotpoints/caucas1/msg/2009/09/m178072.htm),
as well as Nikolai Nikolaev from Krasnodar Region. Dibirov asserts that
the insurgents could be responsible for the abductions. Also, according
to him, dramatizations are possible: allegedly those who are leaving for the
forest and their relatives are organizing the «abductions» http://www.gazeta.ru/news/lenta/2009/09/24/n_1407160.shtml).
As reported to HRC Memorial, the relatives of Nariman Mamedyarov found out
about the skirmish a few days after the event from unofficial sources. At first
the names of those killed weren't released. Some time was lost discerning where
the bodies could be located.
A source at Dpt. Of Internal Affairs (MVD) announced that an operation was
carried out by a military formation of the Interior forces, yet there wasn't
any official information about the whereabouts of the bodies. It is
unknown when the bodies of the abducted and slain Mamedyarov, Kasimov, and
Umarov turned up in the Derbent morgue. On September 24th the brothers of
Mamedyarov, Ruslan and Ayvaz (Robert), went to the morgue in Derbent
practically at random. At first the investigator showed them photographs
on which they recognized Nariman. Subsequently they were shown the body
of the murdered man. According to his relatives, despite the decomposition
process, severe bruises were distinctly visible and fingers were
evidently stretched during torture. The investigator did not permit them to
photograph the body in the morgue.
On the 25th of September, the corpse of Mamedyarov was released to his
relatives. Before burying his remains the relatives of Nariman took
pictures of the body with the cellphone. In their opinion, in spite of
the fact that the body was horribly decomposed, there were evident signs of a
violent death.