Mountain wars. Episode II
The Russian authorities decided to put an end to the Wahhabis in Dagestan.
On Sunday, in the Buynaksky region of the republic, an assault began on the villages of Karamakhi and Chabanmakhi, where Wahhabi self-government has existed for about a year. The operation uses both ground forces and aviation. Four Russian servicemen have already been killed and 15 were injured. Mujahideen losses number in the dozens. Having gained a foothold on the heights, the militants are putting up fierce resistance and are waiting for help from fellow believers from both Dagestan and Chechnya. Shamil Basayev and Khattab are preparing to cross the border again.

Only the dead will be disarmed
The villages of Karamakhi and Chabanmakhi became known throughout Russia in mid-1998, after the leaders of local Wahhabis announced their separation from Dagestan. Since then, everything has been decided by village councils, which are usually headed by either a local mullah or a qad (elected judge). The rules governing life in these villages are a symbiosis of Sharia and mountain laws, according to which villagers have lived from time immemorial.
In addition to the transition to self-government, almost all local men armed themselves and received training in the camps of the Chechen warlord Khattab. The Jordanian terrorist is also connected with Karamakhi by family ties - one of his wives, Patimat, is from this village.
To restore Russian laws, troops were deployed to the villages almost immediately after their separation. However, the then Minister of Internal Affairs, Sergei Stepashin, unexpectedly came to visit the Wahhabis. After talking with their leaders, he said that there was no need to inflame passions, and that all Karamakh residents were “nice and nice people” who promised to surrender their weapons. The minister, in response to this gesture of goodwill, promised to leave the Wahhabis alone. Naturally, no one began to disarm, but the forceful action had to be abandoned.
Everything changed after the August invasion of Dagestan by the mujahideen of Shamil Basayev and the resignation of Stepashin. Although the Wahhabi leaders of Karamakhi and Chabanmakhi did not officially join the militants and did not provide military assistance to the aggressors, some residents of these villages participated in battles with federal forces. After the end of hostilities, they, unlike other Mujahideen, did not flee to Chechnya, but returned home.
On Saturday afternoon, the official authorities of Dagestan warned the Islamic jamaat of Karamakhi and Chabanmakhi about the need to surrender their weapons and hand over those who sided with Basayev. The Wahhabis refused, declaring that weapons could only be taken from the dead. After this, the military had a free hand. Civilians were asked to evacuate, but not all of them managed to do so.
On Sunday, despite heavy fog and low clouds, planes and helicopters were scrambled into the air and carried out missile and bomb attacks on villages and adjacent heights. And then they sent special forces and troops to storm the mountains.

Wahhabis ask for fire
The main battle took place at a height where the militants' television and radio broadcaster was installed. With its help, extremists broadcast their reports and made radio contact with field commanders in Chechnya. The equipment had already been destroyed several times by air strikes, but the Wahhabis restored the transmissions again and again.
After another strike by volumetric detonating bombs, when it seemed that there was not even grass left at the heights, a landing force was landed and was ordered to hold positions until the main forces arrived. But instead of help, Wahhabis appeared. For four hours, soldiers and officers fought a fierce battle. “When we started running out of ammunition, the ‘spirits’ went on the attack,” says one of the paratroopers, who was taken to the hospital with a serious wound. “They shouted ‘Alla Akbar’ and almost ran to our positions at full speed. We killed a dozen of them two, no less. Then they dragged away the wounded and dead and began throwing grenades at us...” Having lost four people killed and 15 wounded, the paratroopers left the heights. The soldiers believe that they were betrayed, sent to certain death.
The Wahhabis were commanded by a native of the village of Karamakhi, Dzharulla, who called himself a brigadier general. At one time, he took an active part in military operations in Chechnya against federal forces. After the war he returned to Karamakhi, but for some reason the Dagestan authorities did not pursue him.
According to official data, 500-600 people are now fighting under his command. They are armed with all types of small arms, grenade launchers, mortars and even anti-aircraft guns. The militants mainly fortified themselves on the heights of Chaban, Gorkab, Chakib and Bakli, as well as on the Wolf Gate pass. There are well-prepared combat positions there with underground passages, food warehouses, firing points, etc. Yesterday, almost all the Wahhabis moved there, leaving Karamakhi without fighting. In this village, by the way, there is also the house of State Duma deputy Nadirshakh Khachilayev. It is not known for certain about his participation in the latest events, but last night information appeared that he was wounded during artillery shelling.
As is known, after clashes with federal forces in the Tsumadinsky and Botlikhsky regions, most of the militants left for Chechnya. And now providing military assistance to fellow believers is a matter of honor for Basayev, and even more so for Khattab. According to information from Grozny, the Mujahideen leaders are calling on their comrades to go to the aid of the encircled Wahhabis. But a new invasion for the bloodless militants is now tantamount to suicide. Perhaps for the first time during the Caucasus campaign, Russian generals have outplayed the enemy in an ideological war: with each passing day, the authority of the Chechen Wahhabi leaders, helplessly watching over the destruction of Jarullah's troops, will fall. In such a situation, the only response on their part could be massive terrorist attacks in the republic. By the way, sabotage activities are included in the plans for the second stage of the “operation to liberate Dagestan,” the beginning of which Basayev announced a week ago.
On the other hand, federal troops cannot delay the operation in Karamakhi and Chabanmakhi for too long. In contrast to the battles for the Botlikh and Tsumadin villages captured by the Mujahideen, the Dagestanis have an ambiguous attitude towards the current military operations. It is no secret that the majority of residents of the republic, especially in villages, have long armed themselves, not hoping for the protection of the authorities. So Karamakhi and Chabanmakhi are no exception. Of course, everyone understands that disarmament is only a formal reason for their assault. In fact, the federal authorities simply want to cleanse the republic of Wahhabis. But there are no guarantees that similar “cleansing operations” will not begin in any other village whose residents have displeased the authorities in some way. Apparently, this is what the Wahhabis surrounded in the mountains are hoping for, calling for an uprising of their neighbors. So far no one has supported the rebels. On the contrary, the militias who fought on the side of the federal forces in Botlikh are again eager to fight.

CRIME DEPARTMENT

Newspaper "Kommersant" No. 156 dated 08/31/1999, p. 1

Mountain wars. Episode II