Conflict in the Caucasus

By Sharanya

The North Caucasus in Russia is often associated with rebels, militants and terrorist. In Dagestan, located in the North Caucasus, Muslims make up a large proportion of the population, with ethnic Russians accounting for only 10%. Despite its oil and gas reserves and access to Caspian Sea fisheries, the people of Dagestan are among the poorest in Russia. It is home to organized crime, violence and remains one of the most unstable regions in the country.

The conflict in the Caucasus can be traced back to the 19^th century when the tribesmen of this region and Chechnya fought against the advance of the Russian Empire. However they escaped the harsh treatment meted out to Chechens during the Stalinist era. The fall of the Soviet Union however did not lead to a decrease in the violence and lawlessness, and it continues to plague the region.

In the 1990s there was a dramatic increase in armed conflict in the area. The Russian government attributed this to Chechen separatists “who have frequently led armed operations in the region”. According to the BBC, in 1999 an Islamic body set up an independent state in parts of Dagestan and Chechnya. Together with Chechen militants, they fought Russian forces, an incident which led to the return of Russian troops to the region.

Since the late 1990s, there have been reports that a radical sect of Islam, Wahhabism, is gaining strength in the area and supporting the separatist movement. To address this problem, Moscow deployed 30,000 troops to the area while attacking guerilla bases in Dagestan and Chechnya. This has led to escalating levels of violence in Dagestan and the surrounding regions.

Members of the FSB, the federal security service, periodically claim to have killed militants. In 2009, there were reports that the Russians had killed an al-Qaeda militant known as Dr. Mohammed. The Algerian national was killed together with another militant near the Chechen border. In July 2009, there were reports of 8 militants being killed. Although Chechnya is becoming more peaceful, the violence is spreading to Dagestan and Ingushetia.

Caught in the clash between the militants and Russian forces are civilians who are subjected to sudden raids, kidnappings, and disappearances. Although the poor suffer the most, the fatalities are not limited to ordinary people. In June 2009 the interior minister, Adilgerei Magomedtagirov, was shot during a wedding reception and later died from his wounds. Earlier in the same month, a senior police officer was also killed and there were also fatalities among the security services.

The killing of militants does not appear to increase the prospects of peace in Dagestan. The metro bombings in Moscow were a huge setback to the peace process, as it increased fears of future attacks and created the potential for xenophobic violence. In fact, just days after the bombing in Moscow, 12 more people were killed in Dagestan in a separate attack. Recently Medvedev spoke of addressing the root causes such as poverty, in an attempt to stem the violence. But, the Dagestan’s tense relations with Moscow, together with poor leadership, make stability in the near future unlikely.