Villagers of Goor-Khindakh express their indignation about Ramazan Abdulatipov's reaction on murder of Gasanguseinov brothers

After the Dagestani leader had promised to clarify the information with the Gasanguseinov brothers' murder, residents of the Shamil District of Dagestan doubted that a serious investigation into the incident would be carried out.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that, according to law enforcers, on August 23, during a shootout in one of mountain gorges of the Shamil District, two militants, later identified as Gasangusein and Nabi Gasanguseinov, residents of the village of Goor-Khindakh, were killed. Fellow villagers of the brothers have stated that they were ordinary shepherds and were killed by mistake. Villagers sent appeals to the authorities demanding to punish the power agents involved.

Almost everyone in the neighbourhood knew the killed young people, said one of the residents of the village of Goor-Khindakh, who introduced himself as Nabi.

"There are no Wahhabis or people 'from forest' in the village, so all the people are shocked by the incident. Nabi and Gasangusein were positive people. They were born in a poor family and began to work early. During the last year, they were engaged in herding the cattle of the villagers," the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told by Nabi.

"Every villager can say that Nabi and Gasangusein were innocent, they were not militants. They were killed, and then they were dressed in camouflage and given weapons to convince the others that they were militants," the man believes.

The local residents are waiting for a response to the open letter sent on August 26 to the Russian President, the General Prosecutor's Office and the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF). In their open letter, the fellow villagers of Gasangusein and Nabi Gasanguseinov claimed that the killed brothers had no connections with the militants and that the law enforcement bodies should be brought to justice for the incident, reported Magomedrasul, another resident of the Shamil District.

"If the investigating authorities suggest that they can keep silence and the people will calm down, then it is not the case. Here, every villager perceives the incident as a personal grief, as an insult. The ordinary guys, who have just begun to live, were killed," said Magomedrasul.

According to him, the statement made on August 29 by Dagestani leader Ramazan Abdulatipov "excited the local residents even more, since the people realized that no investigation would be carried out in Dagestan."

"Journalists, Maxim Shevchenko, and human rights defenders visited the village. I hope that if the situation is made public then that will help to bring justice. I know that relatives are also going to file complaints to the investigating authorities," noted Magomedrasul.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.