The village of Gansolchu is completely destroyed.

Friday, 13 December 2002

Eye-witnesses say that the mountain village of Gansolchu in the Nojai-Yurt district has been completely destroyed. This is why the Russian agencies are preparing us by speaking about the exodus of the population from the mountains because of the actitivities of the fighters.

The village suffered this fate, following other villages and towns of Chechnya, because the unit of Uvais Indirbayev last summer destroyed here a joint unit of soldiers and militiamen who planned to conduct a cleansing operation and attempted to capture A. Maskhadov.

During one day, dozens of Russian soldiers and militiamen were killed and numerous pieces of hardware destroyed. We wrote about this battle and its results.

Following this, the entire anger of the Russians was poured out on the old men, women and children. Daily shelling, including by night, air strikes and a complete blockade forced the few remaining people to leave the village of Gansolchu.

Today, we can in fact state that this village doesn't exist. It is there on the maps, but not in reality, since there isn't a single house. Even the smallest preserved buildings were blown up by the gallant "Russian peacemakers".

Under the guns, an undisguised robbery of the village was committed. Everything which caught the eye was taken.

The village of Gansolchu will enter into the history of Chechnya as one more village of hundreds destroyed by the Russians, but it won't remain dead. Its inhabitants are ready, even today, to begin to restore it with their own forces.

http://www.chechen.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2208

[Translation by Norbert Strade]