Caucasian Front (Chechen War)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= Caucasian Front
( _ru. Кавказский фронт)


caption= Flag of Caucasian Front and Coat Of Arms of ChRI
dates= 2005-present
allegiance=Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Caucasus Emirate 2007-present
type= Infantry
size=
battles= Second Chechen War
commander1= Shamil Basayev 2005-2006
Akhmed Yevloyev 2006-present

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commander1_label= Emirs

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commander2=Ilias Gorchkhanov 2000-2005
Akhmed Yevloyev 2005-present
Rasul Makasharipov 2002-2005
Rappani Khalilov 2005-2007
Abdul Madzhid 2007-present
Muslim Atayev 2002-2005
Anzor Astemirov 2005-present
Alan Digorsky 2006-present
commander2_label=Ingush Jamaat
Shariat Jamaat
Yarmuk Jamaat
Kataib al-Khoul

The Caucasian Front ( _ru. Кавказский фронт) also called Caucasus Front is a structural unit of the rebel Chechen Republic of Ichkeria armed forces, formally established in May 2005 by the decree of then Chechen rebel President Abdul-Halim Sadulayev during the Second Chechen War.

The organization united various Jamaats across the North Caucasus to fight the Russian Federation not only in Chechnya but also in the rest of the North Caucasus, in favor of Chechnya's independence.

It was commanded by Shamil Basayev until his death in July 2006. As of September 2006 it is commanded by Akhmed Yevloyev. In October 2007 leaders of the Caucasian Front and the rebel president of Ichkeria announced the front now also fights to establish the Caucasus Emirate.

Creation

While the anti-Russian local insurgencies in North Caucasus started even before the creation of the Caucasian Front, two months after Aslan Maskhadov's death, the new Chechen separatist President Abdul-Halim Sadulayev officially announced that they had formed a Caucasus Front within the framework of "reforming the system of military-political power." Along with the Chechen, Dagestani and Ingush "sectors," the Stavropol, Kabardin-Balkar, Krasnodar, Karachai-Circassian, Ossetian and Adyghe "jamaats" were included in it.

This, in essence, means that practically all the regions of the Russia's south between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea would be involved in the hostilities. The Chechen separatist movement had taken on a new role as the official ideological, logistical and, probably, financial hub of the new insurgency in the North Caucasus. [http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/05/30/opinion/edaslan.php] Increasingly frequent clashes between federal forces and local militants continue in Dagestan and Ingushetia, while sporadic fighting erupts in the other southern Russia regions.

Notable Events

2004 Nazran raid

On the night of June 21-22, 2004, hundreds of Chechen and Ingush fighters carried out a large-scale raid on Ingushetia, led by Shamil Basayev. The overnight attacks targeted 15 government buildings, mostly in the former Ingush capital Nazran. Some 60 Ingush and Russian members of the security forces, including the republic's Interior Minister Abukar Kostoyev, were killed in the attacks or methodically executed by the assailants, and 27 Ingush civilians were killed in the crossfire.

Dagestan crisis of 2005

According to a July 2005 report by the Russian Academy of Sciences, there were 70 "terror attacks" in Dagestan in the first six months of 2005, compared with 30 for all of 2004. The attacks, which were becoming more sophisticated and deadly, primarily targeted Russian soldiers and the local police and government officials. Sources indicated that as many as 2,000 Islamic insurgents, many belonging to the "Sharia Jamaat" group, were involved in the Dagestani "jihad".

2005 Nalchik raid

On October 13, 2005, chechen and foreign rebels organized a daylight raid on Nalchik in the republic of Kabardino-Balkaria. They attacked government buildings,police stations, FSB headquarters, border guards, police checkpoints, jails, & army centers. 37 rebels were killed and between 35-140 army and police forces were killed. 14 civilians were killed and over 100 were wounded in the crossfire.

Ingushetia crisis of 2007

On July 26 2007, a massive security operation was launched in Ingushetia, sparked by a series of attacks including an assassination attempt on President Murat Zyazikov. [http://news.uk.msn.com/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=5683034] Moscow sent in an additional 2,500 MVD troops, almost tripling the number of special forces in Ingushetia. [http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070829/wl_nm/russia_ingushetia_dc] In the next few days hundreds of men have been rounded up in the sweeps, while several security officers were killed and wounded in the continued attacks. [http://rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/07/033C20C0-674D-442C-9873-C96B284103FB.html] By October 2007, police and security forces in Ingushetia were issued orders to stop informing the media of any "incidents of a terrorist nature." [http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2007/10/1-rus/rus-031007.asp]

Other notable incidents

External links

* [http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0914/p06s01-woeu.html Rising violence in Russia's Ingushetia] Christian Science Monitor on September 14, 2007

See also

* Islamic International Brigade

Chechen wars