Syrian Network for Human Rights: Casualty Report – 15 February 2013

The Syrian network for human rights documented 74 martyrs , Friday 15/02/2013 all across Syria. Most of them in Idlib , Damascus and countryside .Among the martyrs 9 children , 6 ladies , and 22 from free Syrian Army.

Damascus and countryside : 26 martyrs

Idlib : 17 martyrs

Aleppo : 8 martyrs

Hasakee : 4 martyrs

Alraqaa : 5 martyrs

Homs : 6 martyrs

Hama : 2 martyrs

Deir Al Zor : 3

Daraa : 2

Lattakia :1

 

Damascus and countryside : 26 martyrs including three children , lady , and six martyrs from Syrian free army

1-     Mohamad Alhalboin ( Abo Taeseer ) randomly by a sniper , near to Alassad special troops checkpoint – Alqaboon     http://youtu.be/jf1a94vObNc

2-     The Child Hamza Alhabash – 7 years old – Almaliha – Damascus countryside – affected by his wounds , cause of Al MIG shelling on Marj Alsultan town in Damascus countryside    http://youtu.be/O-LDhgTBJAY

3-     Alaa tayseer Alhamrawi –Jobar –Damascus countryside – by a sniper of Alassad troops in Al comeuppance battle to liberate the city of Aadra http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt9uYHk-TZ0
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=483935291670956

4-     Ihsan Ghaleb Tabranin – Misraba – Damascus countryside – known as Abo Mohamad from Syrian Free Army martyr in comeuppance bottle to liberate Aadra city http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt9uYHk-TZ0
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=483935291670956

5-     Ahamd Awaed – Damascus – Daf Alshok- free Syrian Army –assassinated with his brother by Alassad troops in raid for their home in Daf Alshok , their bodies were dragged and tarnished  and then kidnapped – 14-2-2013

6-      Khaled Awaed – Damascus – Daf Alshok- free Syrian Army –assassinated with his brother by Alassad troops in raid for their home in Daf Alshok , their bodies were dragged and tarnished  and then kidnapped 14-2-2013

7-     Mohamad Mahmood Mohamad – Damascus – Alhajar Alaswad – reporter – known as Abo Albaraa – free Syrian Army affected by his wounds , shot by Alassad troops while doing his duty few days ago https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=609987919026790
http://youtu.be/_c09MxLN3BM

8-     Radwan Alqaisi – Damascus – Almidan-by a sniper from Alassad troops – on the highway – near to Alqaboon –Damascushttp://youtu.be/MQHsdaRhKrc
http://sphotos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/841156_611126595569412_280651553_o.jpg

9-     Hisham Alhalaq – Saqba – Damascus countryside – known as Abo Maher , martyred affected by his wounds cause by warplanes  yesterday http://youtu.be/cq_pBDDKhpk

10-Ihsab Ghanoum -– Misraba – Damascus countryside – known as Abo Mohamad from Syrian Free Army martyr in comeuppance bottle to liberate Aadra city

11-Majed Suliman Alalawi – Damascus countryside – shot by Alassad troops http://youtu.be/7mjUwUVOngg

12-Ms Amal Mansour –Albowaidah – Damascus countryside – martyred in Alhajar Alaswad cause of shelling by Alassad troops http://youtu.be/pek58xnbYGY

13-Abo Kasem Swidan – Doma – Damascus countryside – from Syrian Free Army martyr in comeuppance bottle to liberate Aadra city -14-3-2013

14-Hashem  Mohamad Aldibs –Doma- Damascus countryside – martyred cause of shelling by Alassad troops 14-2-2013 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yGsP5XDvFg

15-The Child Nagham Alaa Abdulaziz – Yarmouk refugee camp – Damascus – martyred in Altakadom area , cause of shelling of Alassad troops www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=604943016186911

16-Mohamad Khaled Karbouj – Moazameah Alsham – Damascus countryside-cause of random shelling

17-Ms Manal Alshaikh Kwaider –Arbien – Damascus countryside – By Alassad troops shelling

18-Samer Talebah–Arbien – Damascus countryside – By Alassad troops shelling

19-Adnan Alrais – Harasta – Damascus countryside- Syrian Free Army –clashes with Alassad troops

20-Mohamad Ahmad Alabas – Harasta – Damascus countryside- Syrian Free Army –clashes with Alassad troops

21-Yaseen Ahamd Dawood – Moazameah Alsham – Damascus countryside-shot by a sniper http://youtu.be/0Zg3wPvEm2w

22-Mohamad Mahmod Alef Alserwan -23years old – Damascus – Alsalhia- martyr in Jobar neighborhood through clashes with Alassad troops in Grand Epic battle https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=538722266167802

23- Hassan Mohamad Deeb Alkhoja –known as Abo Mohamad – Dommar – Damascus –shot by Alassad troops andkidnapped his body

24-Mahmod Ibrahim known as Abo Kifah – Palestinian Nationality – Yarmouk refugee camp – martyred in Sabina area – Damascus countryside – through clashes with Alassad troops https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=605028449511701

25-Khaled ALnahawi known as Okasha Abo Mosaab –Madaya – Damascus countryside –martyred through clashes with Alassad troops 13-2-2013

26-Khaldon Albarhamji – Harasta – Damascus countryside – martyred through clashes with Alassad troops

 

Idlib : 17 martyrs including lady, child and three men from Syrian Free Army

1-     Mohamad Jamal Alqalaa – Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city http://youtu.be/jQ8EYS3MP8s

2-     Moneer Abdulhamid Idris– Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOPx5lccr-U&feature=youtu.be

3-     Ghazi Mohamad Abo Di– Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city http://youtu.be/d0loOf7SxOo

4-     Mohamad Aziz Idris- Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOPx5lccr-U&feature=youtu.be

5-     Bilal Abdulkarim Muhana – Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOPx5lccr-U&feature=youtu.be

6-     Abdulkarim Ahmad Kirwan – Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city

7-     Halom Mohamad Kirwan – Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city

8-     Abdulrazak Saleh Arakeel – Lawyer – Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city – http://youtu.be/AsKkRZJpzyg

9-     Mostafa Qadoor AAfan – Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOPx5lccr-U&feature=youtu.be

10-Khaled Mamoun Makhzoom — Khan Shaikhon-Idlib cause of shelling and rocket launchers on the city

11-Unknown lady – Alghasania Idlib-cause of warplane on the village

12-Osamah ALhusain- Maarat Alnoaaman – Idlib – Free Syrian Army – affected by his wounds through clashes with Alassad troop in Albonian Almarsos battle .

13-Suliman Rashid Altanari – Maarat Alnoaaman – Idlib – Free Syrian Army – affected by his wounds through clashes with Alassad troop in Albonian Almarsos battle . http://youtu.be/ldBTLyyMAaU
http://youtu.be/YdFSc0YiY7w

14-Child Fatima Mostafa Orabi – 12 years old – Zarzour _ Idlib –random shelling https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=588524377828568&set=a.251675284846814.79414.249515501729459&type=1&theater

15-Jamal Nofal Dada-  Zarzour _ Idlib –random shelling https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=588525574495115&set=a.251675284846814.79414.249515501729459&type=1&theater

16-Mohamad Aref Alali – Frreka – Idlib –dissident soldier shot by Alassad troops http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=168135646667257&set=a.154438481370307.35651.154403408040481&type=1&theater

17-Abdulkadir Hamidi –Khan Alsobol – Idlib – cause of random shelling

 

Hasakee : 4 martyrs  included two children and a lady

1-     Abdulsalam Yasin Almniti – Alshadadi- Alhasakee – cause of Al MIG shelling on the southern neighborhood of the city and Tall Alshadadi

2-     Child Yousef  Abdulsalam Almniti – Alshadadi- Alhasakee – cause of Al MIG shelling on the southern neighborhood of the city and Tall Alshadadi

3-     Child Anas  Abdulsalam Almniti – Alshadadi- Alhasakee – cause of Al MIG shelling on the southern neighborhood of the city and Tall Alshadadi

4-     Ms Fadia Saaed Jalod Alsalibi -– Alshadadi- Alhasakee – cause of Al MIG shelling on the southern neighborhood of the city and Tall Alshadadi

 

Alraqaa : 4 martyrs included two children and one lady :

1-     Manhal Suliman Alhamod Alshomari – Alraqaa-shot by Alassad troops 14-2-2013

2-     Ms Subhia Salom : 65 years old – Altabaka –Alraqa – affected by the shelling of cluster bombs  on the wide street – downtown

3-     Child: Mohamad Khaled Alshater – 7 years old Altabaka –Alraqa – affected by the shelling of cluster bombs  on the wide street – downtown Deir Al Zor

4-     Child: Ahmad Mohamad Alaabed Taha – 10 years old Altabaka –Alraqa – affected by the shelling of cluster bombs  on the wide street – downtown

5-     Mahmoud Almashhory –Alraqa-random shelling on Alkarama area .

 

Aleppo : 8 martyrs , 7 from Free Syrian Army

1-     Radwan Mohamad Alaswad- Tal AAjar-Aleppo – free army affected by wounded through clashes with Alassad troops near Menag Military Airport  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=445593558844952&set=a.395746480496327.86035.385339138203728&type=1&theater

2-       Mohamad Walid Ibrahim – Altawama-Aleppo-through clashes with ALassad troops in Alashrafia neighborhood

3-     Mohamad Hasa known as Abo Awish – free Syrian Army–through clashes with ALassad troops in Alashrafia neighborhood

4-     Yousef Adel Bakri – reporter – known as Abo Jad – through random shelling

5-     Ibrahim Ali Albadr-Tadef –Aleppo – free army – shot by Alassad troops near by Alsabaa Bahrat http://youtu.be/ni4l3KOJ2R0

6-     Mostafa Latouf Horma – Mayer-Aleppo- free army- shot by Alassad troops

7-     Salah Ahmad Masini – Mayer-Aleppo- free army- shot by Alassad troops

8-     Mohamad Yousef Sharaq known as Abo Allosh – Hayan-Aleppo- free army- shot by Alassad troops

Homs: 6 Martyrs  included two ladies , two children ,and one of the free army

1-     Ms Dalal ALahmad – tal Dahab-Homs-married and mother for five children martyred affected by her wounded cause of shelling to Alhola – Homs countryside

2-     Husain Abdullah Harfosh – Alqsair –Homs – affected his wounded by shelling to Alqusair few days ago https://www.facebook.com/A.E.N.N.Freedom?ref=stream#!/photo.php?fbid=351402224972589&set=a.276649785781167.60418.276646335781512&type=1&theater

3-     Mohamad Zakaria , known as Zakaria Alhomsi– Shinshar –Homs – free army – shot by Alassad Troops in Alsafeera – Aleppo https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=339386189500015

4-     Unknown Martyr-Alghnto-Homs-found shackled hands and his body dumped in Alasei river http://youtu.be/llPcLLFIDHA
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=372872056145388&set=a.198201986945730.41000.195788363853759&type=1&theater

5-      Child Saad Husien Mohamad Alswef – 10 years old – Taeba – Homs – random shelling

6-     Child :   Siham Husien Mohamad Alswef – 10 years old – Taeba – Homs – random shelling

 

Hama : Two martyrs Free Syrian Army

1-      Ahmad Jolaq – Hama-through clashes with Alassad troops in the rural south battle in Hama while hit Alsaleem checkpoint 13-2-2013

2-      Khaled Alswda– Hama-through clashes with Alassad troops in the rural south battle in Hama  while hit Alsaleem checkpoint 13-2-2013

 

Deir Alzoor : 3 martyrs, two form Free Army

1-     Taha Othman Taha known as Abo Aaesha-Albaghlia –by a sniper http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl4ryzhm1kI&feature=share&list=FLuDm1VONVaHCMdbcXdtxnMA
https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/c57.0.403.403/p403x403/66096_487492311285930_1155000894_n.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLAPFQbOfn8&feature=youtu.be

2-     Abo Mosa Almohajer –  Der Alzoor – free army –martyr in Almayadeen , after wounded in Alshadadi – Alhasakee http://youtu.be/AyVbR1SwyL8

3-     Abdullatif Alabdulah Alsuliman Alshikh Fayad – Deir Alzoor cause of the shelling on Alshmitiah vellage

 

Draa : 2 martyrs from Free Syrian

1-     Abdulakader Mohamad ALkatma – Daraa-tafas – dissident solider – through clashes in a battle to lebrate Tal Braq in Hasakee https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/551522_608674865825510_97027956_n.jpg

2-       Amin Qasem Altebawi – Naema – Daraa – Free Army –shot by Alassad Troops

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=430260293715391

Lattakia: 1 : Khaled Almansour – Alhafa –after shelling and rocket launchers on the city of Khan SHekhon-Idlib , after his migration to it for his life

The SNHR documented :

1-     Hafez Abdulasaad-  Deir Alzoor -– free army – martyred in Sunday 10-2-2013 caused by Artillery shell fragments

2-     Mahmoud Alawi Alaskar –  Deir Alzoor -– free army – martyred in Sunday 10-2-2013 caused by Artillery shell fragments

3-     Ahmad Alawi Alaskar-  Deir Alzoor -– free army – martyred in Sunday 10-2-2013 caused by Artillery shell fragments

Following Putin’s Public Attack on Magnitsky’s Colleagues, Russian Authorities Have Opened a New Criminal Case and Threaten Use of “Special Units” against HSBC Bank in Moscow

Press Release
Hermitage Capital

15 February 2013 – The Russian Interior Ministry has opened a new criminal case against colleagues of the late Sergei Magnitsky, who was killed in Russian police custody in 2009. Details of the new criminal case are not yet known other than that it alleges ‘fraudulent actions’.

The new case was opened on January 24, 2013 following public statements by Russian President Vladimir Putin at a December 2012 press conference that he needed to “dig deeper” into the Magnitsky case.

Under this new criminal case, the Russian Interior Ministry is now pressuring HSBC Bank Moscow to provide wide-ranging financial and banking information concerning the companies of the Hermitage Fund and its advisers dating all the way back to 1996.

The Russian Interior Ministry has threatened to use “special forces” to obtain the documents if HSBC doesn’t cooperate.

“Otherwise, the documents which have the force of evidence under the criminal case and are with OOO HSBC Bank RR can be seized by force during a seizure or search, including with the prarticipation of employees of special units,” said the request sanctioned by major G.Sungurov, head of 4th section within the Interior Ministry’s Investigations Department.

Under the Russian law, banking information can be provided to the police only if it concerns specific acts and circumstances of the investigation. The Interior Ministry has failed to identify any circumstances connecting the companies in question to their request, yet they demanded that banking information on transactions of “each day of operations” for 8 different companies be provided in Russia.

 

For further information please contact:

Hermitage Capital
Phone:             +44 207 440 1777
Email:              info@lawandorderinrussia.org
Website:          http://lawandorderinrussia.org/
Facebook:        http://on.fb.me/hvIuVI
Twitter:           @KatieFisher__
Livejournal:     //hermitagecap.livejournal.com/

New Zealand Representative Criticized for Anti-Muslim Rant

By Mark O’Brien
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Political observers in New Zealand say the future of Richard Prosser does not look promising after an anti-Muslim rant has mired him in a national controversy.

New Zealand First MP Richard Prosser caused a controversy with recent anti-Muslim remarks that might jeopardize his political future. (Photo Courtesy of the New Zealand Herald)

Prosser, who is a House of Representatives member for the NZ First party, recently wrote in a magazine column that all young men “who are Muslim, look like Muslims, or come from a Muslim country” should be banned from flying “Western airlines,” according to TV NZ.  The New Zealand Herald also reported that the rant referred to Muslims as “troglodytes” and that Islam was a “stone-age religion.”

“He’s [upset] the party [to] no end,” an anonymous source familiar with the party told the Herald.  “The biggest issue is his total lack of judgment.”

So far, the NZ First party leader Winston Peters has said he does not believe Prosser should resign.  But criticism has been widespread, and the feeling around parliament is that Prosser may serve only one term.

“He’ll be so far down the list next time, you won’t see the top of his head,” the Herald’s source said, discussing Prosser’s future party standing if he survives the next election.

Prosser, who joined Parliament in 2011 fourth on the NZ First party list, has apologized for the comments.  He told the Herald that he believes his willingness to acknowledge he was wrong would go over well with voters.

“I think New Zealanders are essentially fair people,” Prosser said.  “[I]f you make a mistake but admit it, undertake not to do it again, and undertake to correct some of them . . . people will give you a fair go.”

Most people, however, do not appear to share that sentiment.  The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand lodged a formal complaint against Prosser with the Human Rights Commission.  Association leaders called Prosser ignorant and undeserving of being an MP.

“You can maybe excuse it on a street corner on a drunken night, but not from a Member of Parliament,” said the association’s Jamal Green.  “This was not just an outburst.”

Judith Collins, who is New Zealand’s minister for both Ethnic Affairs and Human Rights, called Prosser’s comments “appalling and irresponsible.”  She called on the party to “avoid causing further embarrassment to New Zealand.”

Prosser’s rant was reportedly sparked by a recent incident when he was stopped from carrying his pocketknife on a flight to Christchurch.  This also is not Prosser’s first bought with controversy.  He previously called for a ban on burqas in public, mandatory army training for all citizens, and New Zealand’s South Island to become a separate state.

For further information, please see:

New Zealand Herald — MP Richard Prosser’s Future Looks Shaky — 16 February 2013

MSN NZ — Richard Prosser Faces a Bleak Future — 15 February 2013

TV NZ — Prosser to Be Reported to Human Rights Commission — 14 February 2013

3 News — Collins Slams Richard Prosser’s ‘Anti-Islamic Rant’ — 12 February 2013

Egypt Rallies on Friday

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt – Yesterday, both liberal anti-Morsi protesters and Islamic pro-Morsi supporters  took to the streets in Egypt to demonstrate. The Morsi opponents were protesting against what they perceived as Morsi’s consolidation of power and implementation of Sharia law. The Morsi supporters were demonstrating against violence caused by protests and the need for Sharia law. Predictably, violence broke out.

Thousands of Egyptians took to the streets on Friday to demonstrate their feelings about President Morsi. (Photo Courtesy of the Jerusalem Post)

The anti-Morsi faction congregated outside El-Quba, one of the presidential palaces. They called the rally, “Checkmate Friday,” as if they had cornered the king. The protesters view Morsi as a dictator who has failed to actualize the purposes of the revolution which put him in his position.

National Salvation Front, the main opposition group to Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood, was not involved in this protest. They sought to distance themselves from the protest after coming under criticism that they have been inciting street violence.

As nightfall covered the protest, violence eventually ensued. “Troublemakers” threw rocks and petrol bombs, and security forces answered back with tear gas and water cannons.

Away from the main rally, in the industrial town of al-Mahalla al-Kubra, protesters set fire to a local government building. Additionally, in Alexandria, protesters who tried to force their way into a police station were met by security force violence.

Thousands of pro-Morsi demonstrators also met in Cairo to show  their support for President Morsi and to denounce the violence that has occurred as a result of anti-Morsi protests. This demonstration was dubbed the “Together Against Violence” rally and was organized by the ultraconservative Salafi Islamist group Al-Gama’a al-Islamiya. Ironically, Al-Gama’a al-Islamiya led an armed revolt against the state in the 1990s, but has since denounced violence.

Since the anniversary of the ousting of Mubarak in January, at least sixty people have died as a result of demonstration violence. The pro-Morsi group is calling for an end to this unrest so that Egypt can gain some semblance of stability, such that tourists will not fear the Egyptian political climate and jumpstart its economy. Instead, the protesters just want the whole country to embrace Sharia law.

Mohammed al-Sagheer, a Muslim cleric in the crowd declared that, “the person who came [to power] through ballot boxes will not leave by firebombs.”

Others held banners which read, “No to Violence. Yes to Sharia.”

The demonstrators chanted, “Islam is coming, the Koran is our constitution,” as they marched to the central rally point of Cairo University.

For further information, please see:

Al Jazeera – Pro-Morsi Protesters Rally in Cairo – 15 February 2013

Examiner – Morsi Supporters Hold Rally in Cairo – 15 February 2013

Jerusalem Post – Egypt Islamists Rally Against Violence, for Sharia – 15 February 2013

Reuters – Islamists Rally for Egypt’s Mursi in Cairo – 15 February 2013

Chechen “Assassin” Alleges Tortured False Confession, Goes on Trial

By Madeline Schiesser
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

ODESSA, Ukraine – Last January, an alleged plot to assassinate then prime minister and presidential candidate Vladimir Putin was exposed when an apartment in Odessa Ukraine exploded.  Chechen native and British-educated Adam Osmayev, 31, was arrested and charged with plotting to blow up Putin’s motorcade.  At the time of his arrest, Osmayev confessed.  However, analysts and opposition figures long dismissed the plot was a mere ploy to boost Putin’s ratings before the critical presidential election.  With his case now before a Ukrainian court, Osmayev has retracted his confession and testimony, alleging that he was tortured and harm to his family threatened if he failed to cooperate.

Adam Osmayev still bears the chemical burns from the Odessa apartment explosion, in which he was either framed, or participating in a terrorist plot. (Photo Courtesy of the Telegraph)

Osmayev related his version of events to the British newspaper, The Independent, and to the Ukrainian court.  Osmayev says that he was at the apartment of two acquaintances when he smelled gas before an explosion ripped through the house.  He denies knowing the other two men another Chechen called Ruslan Madayev, and a Kazakh citizen called Ilya Pyanzin very well, and assets that there was never any assassination plot.

Nevertheless, Osmayev, having entered Ukraine on a false passport, fled the scene of the explosion and was forcefully arrested later.  Madayev was killed in the explosion and Pyanzin was arrested on site.

Describing his arrest, Osmayev recalled, “When they broke into the flat to arrest me, they put me face down on the floor.  I wasn’t resisting, but they put handcuffs on me with my hands behind my back, and started beating me, on the back of the head, and with guns.”  He said that experience was nothing compared to what he would have experienced had he failed to cooperate.

During his interrogation, Osmayev alleges that authorities continued to beat and torture him.  He claims during the interrogation his ribs were cracked, he was injected him with a narcotic substances, and he was threatened with physical mutilation.  At one point, Osmayev claims, “[T]hey covered my head with a plastic bag. They told me they had my father and stepmother as hostages, and they would be arrested if I didn’t confess.”

Osmayev further claims that his interrogators threatened to hand him over to Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya’s ruthless Kremlin-backed leader, if he did not confess to the plot against Putin.  By then, Osmayev says “I was ready to admit to anything, even plotting to kill the Pope. Because what Kadyrov does is well known to the world. More than anything I was worried about my father. He had a heart attack a few years ago and I was more worried for him that I was for myself.”

Osmayev’s father, Aslanbek Osmayev has expressed a belief that his son was targeted because of Aslanbek’s former involvement in the Chechen oil industry and a dispute with Ramzan Kadyrov.  Aslanbek claims, “They couldn’t get to me so they went for Adam.  There wasn’t an ounce of truth in [earlier allegations against Aslanbek], and there is no truth in these latest ones, either. . . I think it is partly personal revenge against me, and partly it was an attempt to please superiors with a ‘convenient’ terrorist plot just before the elections.”

Osmayev’s wife, Anina Okuyeva, who also claims she has received anonymous threats that she would be put in a mental asylum if she publicly criticized the case against her husband, read a statement on his behalf Thursday before a court session: “The testimony was given as a consequence of physical and psychological pressure, placed on me by security services from the moment of my detention: During the examination of the case, I took back, in written form, all of the testimony given earlier and demanded an examination of the fact of torture. Considering all these given facts, in accordance with Article 63 of the Constitution of Ukraine, I am forced to refuse to give an explanation in the court session. I ask you to enter this statement into the case file.”

Moscow attempted but failed to have Osmayev extradited to Russia.  He appealed to the European Court of Human Rights and a Ukraine court suspended the extradition.  However, alleged co-conspirator Ilya Pyanzin was extradited to Russia in August.  Osmayev has since renounced his Russian citizenship and applied for refugee status in Georgia and Finland.

Even so, if the Ukraine court convicts him of the charge: “To carry out a terrorist act with the aim of the elimination of the head of the government of the Russian Federation, V. V. Putin,” Osmayev will face up to a 15-year prison sentence.  After Thursday’s hearing, the judge adjourned the case until mid-March.

Osmayev’s lawyer, Olga Chertok, who works independently out of a small office in a shabby Odessa courtyard, has denounced the prosecutor’s case as full of inconsistencies.  Known for usually taking on corporate raiding cases Chertok says authorities tried to keep her away from the Osmayev case because, “They wanted a pliant lawyer, and they knew that wasn’t me.”  Since taking on the case, Chertok has noticed she has been followed and suspects that her telephone has been bugged.

Nevertheless, she remains undeterred.  “There’s not a single piece of evidence that implicates [Osmayev] in any way.”  She explains that she believes the home-made explosive devices were planted in order to give Putin a PR edge before elections.

In Russia, the events of the alleged assassination attempt were not released until February, a week before the Russian presidential election.  News outlets claimed the three men had been caught making bombs from saltpetre, aluminum powder and other substances when one of them accidentally went off.  A computer found in the apartment, alleged to belong to Osmayev, contained internet history of bomb-making websites, and also of video footage of Putin’s motorcade route.  Named as the main organizer, film of Osmayev, his face covered with cuts and bruise, was shown admitting that “the plan was to go to Moscow and carry out an attack on Putin”.

Andrei Soldatov, a security analyst pointed out, “Putin is perhaps the best protected leader in the world.  Attacking his motorcade is unrealistic, he travels much faster than any Western leader would be able to as the streets are always cleared of all other cars before his motorcade arrives.” Some analysts have also noted that assassination attempts have long been a favorite ploy of leaders attempting to demonstrate their own importance.

Osmayev says that although he is a devout Muslim, he has never been interested in radical Islam or terrorism. “I was educated in Britain, I feel like a very European person,” he says. “I don’t believe in terrorism, I believe in freedom of speech and human rights. That’s why I’m against Kadyrov in Chechnya. I have never been involved in any kind of terrorism.”

For further information, please see:

RIA Novosti – Putin Murder Plot Suspect Testifies, Alleges Torture – 14 February 2013

The Independent – Chechen Links Vladimir Putin Plot Trial to Row with Ramzan Kadyrov – 13 February 2013

The Telegraph – Chechen Man Educated in Cotswolds to go on Trial over Putin Plot – 13 February 2013

The Independent – Adam Osmayev: the Public Schoolboy and a Plot to Kill Vladimir Putin – 8 February 2013

RIA Novosti – Putin Death Plot Suspect Retracts Testimony, Claims Torture – 17 January 2013

The Moscow Times – Putin Assassination Plot Suspect Retracts Testimony, Alleges Torture – 18 January 2013