Chechen Activist Mansur Movlaev Detained in Almaty

Mansur Movlaev, a Chechen activist who has spoken out against Ramzan Kadyrov, has been detained in Almaty. An investigative court will be held soon to decide on a preventive measure, Orda.kz reports.

Lawyers will defend Mansur Movlaev from the Almaty Bar Association: Murat Adam, Rena Kerimova, and Elena Zhigalenok.

Elena Zhigalenok, in a commentary for Orda.kz, shared details:

Mansur is a civil activist, he was threatened in Chechnya, was detained several times, was convicted on a fabricated charge, served his sentence, and was forced to leave Russia. He was detained on a wanted list two days ago,
 the lawyer shared.

The Chechen activist and his defense are awaiting an investigative court hearing, which will take place in the coming days:

Today or tomorrow, there will be an investigative court, extradition arrest for 40 days, during which time our prosecutor's office will wait for the materials related to the wanted notice and a request for extradition from the Russian Federation. While the issue of extradition is being decided, his extradition arrest will be extended to 12 months.

The lawyer noted that the defense will make every effort to prevent Movlaev's extradition to the Russian authorities, where he is on the federal wanted list as an extremist.

Our task is to prevent extradition, we will apply for him to receive the status of an asylum seeker. We are sure that in the event of extradition, there is a real threat to his life and health,
 Zhigalenok emphasized.

According to the publication Current Time, in 2022, Movlaev escaped from an unofficial prison in Chechnya and illegally crossed the border into Kyrgyzstan, without documents and official status. In 2023, a court in Bishkek sentenced him to six months and ordered his deportation from the country after serving his sentence.

In October 2024, Movlaev reported that his brothers, Zelimkhan and Khamzat, had been kidnapped in Chechnya.

Original Author: Aliya Askarova