Russians Have Stranglehold On Grozny Remaining Chechens In Capital Say Russian Troops Looting

Alongside a sign declaring “Stop! We shoot without warning!,” dozens of Chechen men were lined up Tuesday, spreadeagled against a wall to be frisked by Russian soldiers.

“It’s the first time I have raised my hands for anyone,” Musa Edilov said in disgust at the checkpoint outside Grozny.

“I’m not scared of the Russians, just ashamed that I have to enter my own land in such a way. It’s like the German occupation,” the 65-yearold man said.

Then, picking up his battered rucksack, Edilov headed off to look for the remains of his home. It was his first trip back since fleeing Grozny last month.

The Russian military presence in the Chechen capital is intimidating. Russian troops have totally ringed Grozny, wiping out the last rebel resistance.

Armored personnel carriers roared past on patrol in the shattered city, covering residents in a layer of dust as they returned to Grozny pushing makeshift carts stuffed with belongings.

Soldiers in balaclavas and mirrorshades popped out of foxholes hidden in the rubble every few hundred yards, brandishing automatic weapons and asking for identity papers.

The Chechens complained of looting by Russian troops.

“They loot every day - no, make that every hour,” said Supian Magomadov, 43, a history lecturer at the now abandoned Chechen State University.

Magomadov said he saw Russian soldiers in armored personnel carrier approach an apartment buildling in northern Grozny on Monday and blow out the ground-floor windows with a rocket-propelled grenade.

“They walked inside and loaded videos, perfumes and other stuff onto their APC,” said Magomadov.A crowd of bystanders buzzed with agreement.

The Chechens are among the best traders in the Caucasus region, born of necessity from the Russian economic blockade imposed on the republic before the conflict began. Many left valuables bought on shopping trips in Europe and the Middle East when they fled.

In Moscow, the deputy head of Federal Counterintelligence Service admitted looting by soldiers, but also blamed the Chechens.