Abdul-Khalim Saidullayev, the head of a self-styled Chechen rebel government, was killed yesterday in a gunbattle with pro-Russian forces in Chechnya that officials called a major setback to armed separatists in the war-torn south Russian province.
"We are standing right beside his body, which has been identified by people who knew Saidullayev well," the police chief in the Chechen city of Argun where the rebel leader was killed was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying.
Other top local and federal officials confirmed the death of Saidullayev, a little-known figure believed to be in his mid-30s who took over as "president" of Ichkeria -- the name for Chechnya used by separatist forces there -- in March last year.
Local officials said one other rebel fighter was killed with Saidullayev and Nikolai Patrushev, head of the Russian FSB security service, which took part in the operation, said in Moscow that one FSB agent and one local police officer also died in the gunfight.
The killing of Saidullayev was trumpeted by leaders of the Moscow-backed official government of the province, with Chechen Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov claiming that rebel forces there had "been dealt a decisive blow from which they will never recover."
"The terrorists have practically been beheaded," Interfax news agency quoted Kadyrov as saying.
Independent experts agreed that the killing of Saidullayev was a significant success for the pro-Russian forces now nearing the seven-year mark of a low-intensity war with rebels who are fighting for Chechnya's independence from the Russian Federation, but downplayed its impact.
"It is a heavy blow to the rebels, but not as important a blow as the killing of Basayev or Umarov would be," said Yulia Latynina, a respected expert on the Russian North Caucasus region, referring to Chechen rebel warlord Shamil Basayev and key rebel leader Doku Umarov.
Although he was the hand-picked successor of Chechen rebel political leader Aslan Maskhadov, slain by Russian forces last year, Saidullayev was not well known even in Chechnya and was not regarded by experts there or outside the province as having much real control over the rebels.
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