UN Human Rights Committee Urges Kazakhstan Not to Extradite Chechen Activist to Russia

The UN Human Rights Committee has asked Kazakhstan to refrain from extraditing Chechen activist Mansur Movlaev to Russia until it considers his complaint on the merits on August 24, 2026, Orda.kz reports.

The committee issued urgent interim measures, used when there is a risk of irreparable harm, including to life.

Copies of the decision were published by Fatima Suleymanov, press secretary of the political organization United Force, and Nina Belyaeva, a former municipal councillor in Russia's Voronezh region.

Russia has placed Movlaev on an international wanted list. He was detained in Almaty in 2025 and placed in a pre-trial detention centre. A native of Chechnya, Movlaev is accused of passing information about kidnappings, torture, and fabricated criminal cases in the republic to opposition Telegram channels in 2019–2020. He is now listed in a case concerning the financing of an extremist community. Activists say he could face politically motivated persecution if transferred to Russia.

In June 2025, Russian authorities submitted an official extradition request. Movlaev applied for asylum, and in early 2026, the request was approved by Kazakhstan’s Prosecutor General’s Office. This decision is not final, however, and is currently under review by the Supreme Court of Kazakhstan. Movlaev remains in custody.

In a recent report, journalists from TV Rain (Dozhd) referred to this case and  questioned whether Russians are safe in Kazakhstan.

Original author: Alexander Smolin