Elena Patyaeva—a friend of Seda Suleymanova, who disappeared three years ago after being forcibly returned from St. Petersburg to Chechnya—was detained in Grozny. On August 23, Patyaeva stood by the monument to journalists who died for freedom of speech, holding a sign that read: "I demand an investigation into the murder of Seda Suleymanova." This was reported by the human rights project "Slovo Zashchite" (Word for the Defense).
Security forces reported the detention of 15 members of an extremist community in the Baksan district of Kabardino-Balkaria. According to investigators, they are involved in the public dissemination of a radical ideology based on the denial of traditional Islamic norms and Russian laws, as well as committing violent acts motivated by religious hatred.
Investigators believe that in 2023, Rezuan Kangezov created a cell of the community. On his instructions, other participants used physical and psychological violence against those whose behavior did not correspond to the ideology of the extremists.
The homes of the defendants in the case were searched, and prohibited religious literature was seized. A criminal case was opened under articles of the Criminal Code on the creation of an extremist community.