In Chechnya, imams recruit parishioners into the Akhmat battalions to take part in the war with Ukraine right during the Friday sermon. The Chechen socio-political movement 1ADAT writes about this in its Telegram channel.

According to him, mercenaries are offered a salary of 50-60 thousand rubles for participation in the war. Any man aged 18-40 can sign up for Akhmat.

As 1ADAT founder Ibrahim Yangulbaev told The Insider, imams tell parishioners that they will not be taken to Ukraine:

“The muftiate gave such instructions to imams in four mosques in different regions of Chechnya. During Friday prayers, some kind of political agenda is always announced. And imams talk about it in mosques, on their pages and in their Telegram channels. In this deceitful way, Kadyrov lures volunteers to participate in the war against Ukraine. And only Kadyrovites and petty sycophants go there.”

On June 7, the Chechen authorities reported that more than eight thousand people left the republic for the war in Ukraine. According to the speaker of the Chechen parliament, Magomed Daudov, 1,360 of them are Chechen volunteers. In fact, there are almost no real volunteers left: the security forces intimidate residents, torture them and threaten them with criminal cases. Read about how the inhabitants of Chechnya are forcibly sent to fight in Ukraine in The Insider.