The leader of the Russian republic of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, recently authorized police to shoot to kill pro-Palestinian protesters who might take to the streets of Chechnya. The orders came in the wake of an antisemitic riot that broke out on Oct. 29, 2023, in the neighboring Russian republic of Dagestan.
It is not that Kadyrov doesn’t support the Palestinian cause; he does. Rather, the order demonstrates that he has a tight grip on the previously rebellious republic and is able to exert his omnipotent power – a power that extends far beyond the borders of Chechnya, a predominantly Muslim republic in the North Caucasus.
