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Four Chechen Akhmat Officers Killed in Car Bomb Blast Near Occupied Skadovsk

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Photo of Vlad Litnarovych
Vlad Litnarovych
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Four Chechen Akhmat Officers Killed in Car Bomb Blast Near Occupied Skadovsk
Illustrative image. A destroyed Russian Akhmat armored vehicle is seen near the village of Pravdino, Kherson region, Ukraine on November 20, 2022. (Source: Getty Images)

A vehicle carrying four officers from Russia’s Akhmat  unit—part of the Chechen forces loyal to Ramzan Kadyrov—was destroyed in a blast on occupied Ukrainian territory, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) reported on May 21.

According to the statement, the explosion occurred on May 20 along the road between Skadovsk and Antonivka in the Kherson region.

The UAZ Patriot SUV was reportedly carrying four Russian officers from the Akhmat unit.

“None survived,” the report stated.

A secondary explosion followed shortly after the initial blast believed to have been caused by the detonation of ammunition being transported in the vehicle.

Earlier, the Ukrainian Armed Forces eliminated Buvaysar Khasanovich Umkhanov, a commander of the Akhmat special forces battalion, during operations in Russia’s Kursk region.

Umkhanov, known by the call sign “Tarzan,” was killed during a strike on a command post where his unit was stationed.

Umkhanov served as a platoon commander in the “Hunter” battalion of the 4th Akhmat Special Purpose Brigade, operating under the Russian Ministry of Defense. His unit was tasked with maintaining control over Russia’s state border in the Kursk region.

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The Akhmat Special Rapid Reaction Squad is a unit of the Russian Federal Guard, actually subordinated personally to the head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov. The unit was created in 2009 to fight supporters of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. Novaya Gazeta journalists have noted in investigations that Akhmat has been involved in kidnappings, torture and extrajudicial executions, and the unit is home to at least one secret prison. During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Akhmat was ironically referred to as “tiktok-army” because its fighters did not participate in combat operations but filmed videos in the rear in which they simulated a fierce confrontation with the Ukrainian Armed Forces.