5.  The first applicant was born in 1949 and lives in Strasbourg, France. The second applicant was born in 1984 and lives in Grozny, Chechnya, Russia.
6.  At the relevant time the applicants were residents of Grozny, Chechnya. Their property was damaged in the course of a counterterrorist operation in 1999-2000. The applicants did not pursue criminal remedies in order to determine the exact circumstances or identify the perpetrators of the damage. Instead, they sought to obtain no-fault compensation provided for by Government Decree no. 404 (see below). The applicants complied with the requirements for applying for the compensation and submitted the relevant documents. However, for administrative reasons their claims were not processed until September 2013. Their individual situations can be summarised as follows.
7.  The first applicant’s flat was damaged during the hostilities in 1994‑1995, and then destroyed in 1999-2000. It was situated in a 70-flat apartment block at 21 Tereshkova Street in Grozny, Chechnya.
8.  In March 2005 the first applicant submitted an application for administrative compensation to the Commission for compensation for lost property (Комиссия по рассмотрению заявлений граждан о компенсационных выплатах за утраченное жилье и имущество, hereafter “the Commission”). She received an acknowledgment of receipt of documents (no. 22/9777).
9.  In April 2005 the Leninskiy District Court of Grozny confirmed the first applicant’s title to property of flat no. 25 in the destroyed apartment block at 21 Tereshkova Street.
10.  In 2007 the first applicant was registered as a person eligible for social housing because her flat had been destroyed during the hostilities. She was assigned number 742 in the waiting list; in February 2016 her number was 727.
11.  In June 2010 the applicant was informed that her application had not been examined by the Commission since the building in question had not been entered in the register of destroyed buildings. The register was to be updated by the technical unit of the Federal authority on construction and municipal services (техническая группа Федерального агентства по строительству и ЖКХ по формированию перечня разрушенного жилья на территории Чеченской республики, hereafter “the technical unit”). However, in August 2005 the work of the technical unit had been put on hold and the list of destroyed housing has not been updated since that time. Hence, the first applicant’s application has not been processed and no decision has been taken.
12.  The first applicant complained to a district court about the Commission’s failure to act. On 12 August 2010 the Staropromyslovskiy District Court of Grozny rejected the first applicant’s claim, pointing out that the Commission was unable to proceed in the absence of the corresponding entry in the register. On 7 September 2010 the Supreme Court of Chechnya upheld that judgment on appeal. The first applicant’s subsequent attempts to obtain supervisory review were unsuccessful.
13.  In 2011 she was informed by the Commission’s secretariat that the technical unit had not been operational since 2005 and that the Commission did not know whether or when it would restart its work.
14.  The first applicant instituted civil proceedings, seeking damages for the destroyed property directly from the Government of Chechnya. On 21 March 2013 the Leninskiy District Court of Grozny rejected the first applicant’s claim, referring to the expiry of the time-limit and the lack of legal grounds for such claims. On 28 May 2013 the Supreme Court of Chechnya upheld that decision, except the part referring to expiry of the limitation period. The Supreme Court stressed that compensation could not be paid because a new procedure for the payment of compensation was currently being devised.
15.  The second applicant owned flat no. 12 in an apartment block at 53 Kavkazskaya Street, Grozny. The building was destroyed during the hostilities in 1999-2000.
16.  In November 2004 the second applicant applied to the Commission and his file was assigned number 02/13975.
17.  In 2008 the applicant was registered as a person eligible for social housing because his flat had been destroyed during the hostilities. He was assigned number 1599 in the waiting list; in 2016 his number was 1579.
18.  In April 2010 he was informed that his application had not been examined by the Commission since the address in question had not been entered in the register of destroyed buildings.
19.  The second applicant complained to a court. On 5 July 2010 the Staropromyslovskiy District Court of Grozny rejected his complaint since the Commission was unable to proceed in the absence of the technical unit’s register. On 10 August 2010 the Supreme Court of Chechnya upheld the decision on appeal.
20.  The second applicant sought to obtain damages from the Government of Chechnya for the damaged property and for failure to compensate the damage by alternative means. His claim was dismissed for failure to comply with the limitation period in a judgment of the Leninskiy District Court of Grozny of 27 June 2013, upheld on appeal on 7 November 2013 by the Supreme Court of Chechnya.
21.  The Government submitted a letter issued by the Chechen Government on 13 January 2016, in response to a request for information in relation to the applicants’ situation. The letter stated that the Commission had ceased to exist in January 2014. It had held a final meeting on 16 September 2013 and, according to the minutes of the meeting (no. 61), had rejected all claims lodged by the owners of property which had not been entered in the register of destroyed buildings. Both applicants were in that category. In respect of the first applicant, the letter stated that her house had been inspected by the technical unit, which had confirmed its destruction (without specifying the date or any reference to the inspection record); however, for unknown reasons the building had not been entered in the register. The second applicant’s house had been inspected by the technical unit, which had found that it had not been destroyed (without specifying the date or any reference to the inspection record). The letter concluded by saying that all documents relevant to the individuals’ claims for compensation had been transferred to the Chechnya Government Archives Service for storage. No additional documents were submitted by the Government, and it is unclear whether the applicants were informed of the Commission’s decision.
22.  The second applicant also submitted additional documents dating back to 2008 and 2010, confirming destruction of the apartment block where he had owned a flat. In February 2008 the local district administration examined flat no. 12 at 53 Kavkazskaya Street, Grozny, and concluded that it had been 100% destroyed. The applicant was issued with a certificate to that effect. On 24 May 2010 the local administration examined the building at 53 Kavkazskaya Street and found that it had been demolished.