Dzhabrail Bekmirzayevich Yamadayev (16 June 1970 – 5 March 2003) was a Chechen rebel field commander during the First Chechen War. He switched sides together with his brothers, Ruslan and Sulim in 1999 during the outbreak of the

Second Chechen War The Second Chechen War (russian: Втора́я чече́нская война́, ) took place in Chechnya and the border regions of the North Caucasus between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, from August 1999 ...

and then became the commander of the

Russian special forces Spetsnaz are special forces in numerous post-Soviet states. (The term is borrowed from rus, спецназ, p=spʲɪtsˈnas; abbreviation for or 'Special Purpose Military Units'; or .) Historically, the term ''spetsnaz'' referred to the S ...

unit ''Vostok''. Yamadayev was assassinated by a bomb blast in March 2003.

Biography

During the First Chechen War the five Yamadayev brothers fought against the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

n troops and enjoyed great influence as field commanders. Dzhabrail held the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in the separatist forces of

Chechen Republic of Ichkeria The Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (; ce, Нохчийн Республик Ичкери, Nóxçiyn Respublik Içkeri; russian: Чеченская Республика Ичкерия; abbreviated as "ChRI" or "CRI") was a ''de facto'' state that ...

. When the second war in Chechnya broke out in 1999, the Yamadayevs (including Dzhabrail, Sulim and Ruslan) voluntarily

defected In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state in exchange for allegiance to another, changing sides in a way which is considered illegitimate by the first state. More broadly, defection involves abandoning a person, ca ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

's side. Since then, Dzhabrail became a prominent supporter of

Akhmad Kadyrov Akhmad-Khadzhi Abdulkhamidovich Kadyrov ce, Къадири Ӏабдулхьамидан кӀант Ахьмад-Хьажи, Q̇adiri Jabdulẋamidan khant Aẋmad-Ẋaƶi (23 August 1951 – 9 May 2004) was a Russian politician and revolutionar ...

, leading an elite special force with a core of several dozen former National Guards of ChRI, then a company-sized local special unit directly answerable to the General Staff of the Russian Army. He also held the position of deputy military commandant of Chechnya. The guerrillas nicknamed him "Dzhaba", meaning "bullfrog" in Russian.

Assassination

On 5 March 2003, Dzhabrail Yamadayev was killed along with three of his bodyguards in his own house in the village of Dyshne-Vedeno by a bomb planted under a couch that he slept on after returning from a two-day operation in the mountains. The explosion was so powerful that the house was almost completely destroyed.

President of Russia The president of the Russian Federation ( rus, Президент Российской Федерации, Prezident Rossiyskoy Federatsii) is the head of state of the Russian Federation. The president leads the executive branch of the federal ...

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

awarded Dzhabrail a posthumous medal and title of the Hero of the Russian Federation, while Dzabrail's brother Sulim took over his command (which in the fall of 2003 was upgraded to a

spetsnaz Spetsnaz are special forces in numerous post-Soviet states. (The term is borrowed from rus, спецназ, p=spʲɪtsˈnas; abbreviation for or 'Special Purpose Military Units'; or .) Historically, the term ''spetsnaz'' referred to the S ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...

Vostok Vostok refers to east in Russian but may also refer to: Spaceflight * Vostok programme, Soviet human spaceflight project * Vostok (spacecraft), a type of spacecraft built by the Soviet Union * Vostok (rocket family), family of rockets derived from ...

subordinated to

GRU The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, rus, Гла́вное управле́ние Генера́льного шта́ба Вооружённых сил Росси́йской Федера́ци ...

, the Russian military intelligence). According to the 2006 statement by the rebel leader Abdul-Halim Sadulayev, pro-Moscow Chechen leader

Ramzan Kadyrov Ramzan Akhmadovich Kadyrov ce, КъадаргӀеран Ахьмат-кӏант Рамзан, translit= (born 5 October 1976) is a Russian politician who currently serves as the Head of the Chechen Republic. He was formerly affiliated to the ...

and his father Akhmad were behind the killing of Dzhabrail Yamadayev, and his brother Sulim later killed four of Dzhabrail's personal bodyguards who were involved in his murder. In May 2008, remains belonging to Vakharsolt Zakayev, a former Vostok officer (platoon leader) who had disappeared about six months after that incident and was assumed to have been executed by his colleagues on suspicion in taking part in assassination, were found in the outskirts of

Gudermes Gudermes (russian: Гудерме́с; ce, Гуьмсе, ''Gümse'' or , ''Guthermajas'') is a town in the Chechen Republic, Russia, located on the Sunzha River east of Grozny, the republic's capital. Population: 32,000 (1970). History Gud ...

.A parade of corpses before the decisive battle

Prague Watchdog Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

, 12 May 2008

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamadayev, Dzhabrail 1970 births 2003 deaths Chechen field commanders Chechen warlords Heroes of the Russian Federation People of the Chechen wars Russian military personnel Chechen guerrillas killed in action Russian people of Chechen descent Chechen people

Biography

Assassination

See also

References