Yarmuk Jamaat

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Yarmuk Jamaat
Active	2002-Present
Allegiance	Caucasian Front
Type	Infantry
Engagements	Second Chechen War
Commanders
Commanders	Muslim Atayev † Anzor Astemirov

Yarmuk Jamaat is a militant Islamist organization connected to numerous attacks against the local and federal security forces in Russian region of Kabardino-Balkaria in the North Caucasus. It became part of the Caucasian Front of the Second Chechen War.

Contents 1 History 2 Notable Events 3 Membership 3.1 Identified male members 3.2 Identified female members 4 References

[edit] History

In the late 1990s, intolerance of religious dissent by Valery Kokov, the administrator of the Kabardino-Balkaria region, forced many Muslim organizations to go underground.

The Jamaat of Kabardino-Balkaria became one of these organizations and many of its members fled to Chechnya for paramilitary training, reportedly under Ruslan Gelayev. After their training, these members returned and formed the current paramilitary off-shoot in 2002.^[1] The Jamestown Foundation reported that volunteers had indeed been operation in the North Caucasus, but that the Yarmuk Jamaat was officially established in August 2004 by Muslim Atayev.^[2]

The insurgency network in Kabardino-Balkaria was originally established by the Shagen brothers, who were Kabardins. In 2003, the brothers arranged for Chechen field commander Shamil Basaev to visit Kabardino-Balkaria. Both brothers were killed later that same year. Mussa Mukozhoyev was the self-proclaimed emir of the Jamaat and was widely known to be a moderate. He told "We are not fools. We don't want to bring the Chechen war into our homes," But even then, he explained, it was becoming harder and harder to hold back extremists intent on Jihad against the Russians they considered to be their oppressors. Those more radical members went on to form Yarmuk.

Yarmuk Jamaat issued a statement in January 2004 outlining their rationale for violent action and basing their turn toward violence on the Hanbali school of religious law, one of the four main schools within Sunni Islam.^[3]

It's current leader, Anzor Astemirov took credit for the idea of establishing the Caucasus Emirate which was proclaimed in late 2007 by President of Ichkeria Doku Umarov.

[edit] Notable Events

• 2005 Nalchik raid
• Assassination of Anatoly Kyarov

[edit] Membership

Although both Kabardins and Balkars participate in the organization, it is believed that most of the fighters are Balkars.

[edit] Identified male members

• Muslim Atayev (deceased, 1/27/05), former leader until his death.^[4]
• Rusam Bekanov (deceased, 4/29/05), leader after Atayev. He was killed in a shootout at a checkpoint 3 months after he became leader.^[5]
• Anzor Astemirov, current leader after Bekanov, he is believed to have led the Nalchik raid.^[6]
• Buzdzhigit Atmurzaev (deceased, 1/27/05), killed in the same raid that killed Atayev.
• Mukhtar Batchaev (deceased 4/29/05), originally from Nalchik.
• Ismail Baluev (captured 4/29/05), originally from outside Nalchik. Captured at checkpoint where Bekanov was killed.
• Ilyas Bichekuev (deceased, 1/27/05), deputy to Muslim Atayev killed in the same raid that killed Atayev.
• Boris Blimgotov (deceased, 4/29/05), originally from Karachaevsk, he was killed with Bekanov at the checkpoint.
• Rashid Khulamkhanov (deceased), killed in the first skirmish between Yarmuk Jamaat and law enforcement.
• Magomed Temirezov, (status unknown), believed to be killed with Bekanov.
• Mussa Mukozhoyev, original leader of the Jamaat group.
• Ruslan Odizhev (deceased 6/27/07), believed to have participated in the Nalchik raid. He was killed during a raid in Nalchik.^[7]
• Anzor Tengizov (deceased 6/27/07), killed with Odizhev in Nalchik.
• Murat Zhabelov (deceased), killed in the first skirmish between Yarmuk Jamaat and law enforcement.
• Magomed Zhantuev (captured 4/29/05), originally from Nalchik. Captured at checkpoint where Bekanov was killed.

[edit] Identified female members

• Zhanista Baykazieva (deceased, 1/27/05)
• Sakinat Katsieva (deceased, 1/27/05), Muslim Atayev's wife. She was killed in the same raid that killed her husband.^[8]
• Zukhra Semenova (deceased, 1/27/05)
• Olesya Trunova (deceased, 1/27/05), Buzdzhigit Atmurzaev's wife. A converted Russian woman, she was killed in the same raid that killed her husband.

[edit] References

v • d • e Russian-Chechen Conflict
Main events	Specific articles	Federals	Separatists
Wars First Chechen War Dagestan War Second Chechen War Notable battles Grozny (1994) Grozny (1994–1995) Grozny (1996) Grozny (1999–2000) Komsomolskoye (2000) Other Khasav-Yurt accord Russian apartment bombings Hostage crises: Buddyonovsk Kizlyar Moscow Beslan	Second Chechen War 1999 bombing campaign Assassinations Casualties Aircraft losses Crimes and terrorism: Mass graves Suicide attacks Insurgency since May 2000 Caucasian Front International response Federal government in Chechnya	Combatants: Russian Federation Russian Army (Ground Forces) MVD (OMON, Internal Troops) FSB and GRU Special forces (OSNAZ, Spetsnaz) Republic of Chechnya (Kadyrovtsy) Key leaders : Boris Yeltsin Vladimir Putin Doku Zavgayev Akhmad Kadyrov † Alu Alkhanov Ramzan Kadyrov	Combatants: Chechen Republic of Ichkeria Mujahideen Key leaders: Dzhokhar Dudayev † Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev † Aslan Maskhadov † Abdul Halim Sadulayev † Dokka Umarov Shamil Basayev † Akhmed Yevloyev Khattab † Abu al-Walid † Abu Hafs al-Urduni † Muhannad