6.  The applicants are close relatives of persons who disappeared as a result of a large-scale sweeping operation conducted by the Russian federal military forces in Mesker-Yurt between 21 May and 11 June 2002.
7.  The Court has already examined cases in which other residents of Mesker-Yurt were abducted by federal servicemen in 2002 in the following judgments: Amanat Ilyasova and Others v. Russia, no. 27001/06, 1 October 2009, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Musa Ilyasov on 11 August 2002; Ilyasova and Others v. Russia, no. 1895/04, 4 December 2008, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Adam Ilyasov on 15 November 2002; Magamadova and Iskhanova v. Russia, no. 33185/04, 6 November 2008, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Viskhadzhi Magamadov and Mr Khaskhan Mezhiyev on 14 November 2002; Petimat Magomadova v. Russia, no. 36965/09, 9 January 2014, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Buvaysar Magomadov on 27 October 2002; Aliyeva and Dombayev v. Russia no. 67322/099 January 2014, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Apti Dombayev on 4 November 2002; Kosumova and Others v. Russia, no. 27441/07, 7 June 2011, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Abdul Kasumov on 21 November 2002; and Takhayeva and Others v. Russia, no. 23286/04, 18 September 2008, concerning the abduction and subsequent disappearance of Mr Ayub Takhayev on 13 November 2002.
8.  The relevant facts are summarised below. The personal data of the applicants and their missing relatives are summarised in the attached table (Appendix I).
9.  The circumstances of all the abductions are similar and can be summarised as follows. At the material time the village of Mesker-Yurt was under curfew. The federal forces had set up checkpoints on the roads leading to and from the settlement.
10.  Between 21 May and 11 June 2002 servicemen of the Russian federal forces conducted a large-scale “sweeping-up” operation in Mesker-Yurt. On 21 May 2002 they arrived in the settlement in several armoured personnel vehicles (APCs) and other military vehicles, such as UAZ minivans and URAL lorries. They blockaded the village and set up a temporary filtration camp on the outskirts. Nobody was allowed to leave the village.
11.  The servicemen, who spoke Russian without an accent, checked the residents’ identity documents. After the check they took some of the residents away, including the applicants’ relatives, under the pretext of needing to carry out further identity checks. They told the applicants that their relatives would be released once the checks had been completed.
12.  The majority of the applicants’ relatives were taken away between 21 May and 5 June 2002, either from their homes or from the local mosque, where they had been hiding in the belief that it was a safe place. All of the residents detained during the special operation were taken to the temporary filtration camp.
13.  The applicants visited the temporary filtration camp on several occasions and passed food to their relatives through the servicemen guarding it.
14.  On 4 June 2002 the body of Mr Adam Temersultanov, who had been detained during the special operation, was thrown from a military UAZ vehicle on the outskirts of the village. He was found by local residents. The other sixteen abducted men were transferred from the filtration camp to an unknown location. The applicants have had no news of their missing relatives ever since.
15.  On an unspecified date between 9 and 17 June 2002 the military unit conducting the special operation in Mesker-Yurt left the place where they had been stationed as well as the temporary filtration camp in the vicinity of the village. On 17 June 2002, local residents went to the place where the unit had been stationed and found several pits with blown-up human remains.
16.  From the documents submitted by the parties it transpires that along with the applicants’ relatives, a number of other residents of Mesker-Yurt, including Mr R. Makhtykhanov, Mr M. Magomedov and Mr I. Gachayev, were abducted during the special operation. All of them, like the applicants’ relatives, were arrested at home or at the mosque and taken to the filtration camp. They then went missing.
17.  According to the applicants, as a result of the special operation, nineteen residents of Mesker-Yurt were killed and a number of others, including their relatives, have gone missing.
(b)  Information submitted by the Government
18.  The Government did not submit their version of the events and did not dispute the circumstances of the abductions as presented by the applicants.
19.  From the Government’s submission concerning the official investigation into the events, it transpires that during a passport check on 27 May 2002, federal servicemen killed Mr A. Saltamirzayev. In addition, on 4 June 2002 a resident of Mesker-Yurt, Mr I. Khadzhimuradov, died as a result of an explosion and on 5 June 2002 two other residents of Mesker-Yurt, Mr M. Malayev and Mr A. Temersultanov, died under similar circumstances.
20.  Mr Islam Ortsuyev was born in 1980. On 21 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him from his house at 157 Lenina Street.
(b)  Abduction of Mr Adam Gachayev
21.  Mr Adam Gachayev was born in 1973. On 21 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him from the family house at 24 Sheripova Street (in the documents submitted, also referred to as Vishnevaya Street).
(c)  Abduction of Mr Aslan Israilov and Mr Anzor Israilov
22.  Mr Aslan Israilov was born in 1981 and his brother, Mr Anzor Israilov, was born in 1984. On 21 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted the brothers from their house at 71 Lenina Street.
(d)  Abduction of Mr Ibragim Askhabov
23.  Mr Ibragim Askhabov was born in 1983. On 22 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him from his house at 8 Checkhova Street.
24.  According to the applicants, shortly after the abduction they learnt from undisclosed sources that in June 2002 Mr Askhabov had been detained on the premises of the Shali district department of the interior (Шалинский районный отдел внутренних дел (РОВД)) (“the ROVD”) and then transferred elsewhere.
(e)  Abduction of Mr Shaip Makhmudov
25.  Mr Shaip (also spelled as Shoip) Makhmudov was born in 1980. On 23 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him on the outskirts of Mesker-Yurt where he was tending cattle. In the documents submitted the place of the abduction was also referred to as 63 Tereshkova Street.
(f)  Abduction of Mr Sayd-Magomed Abubakarov
26.  Mr Sayd-Magomed Abubakarov was born in 1982. On 21 May 2002 (in the documents submitted the date was also referred to as 23 May 2002) a group of armed servicemen, who arrived in two APCs with registration numbers 588 and 466, abducted  him from his house at 64 Lenina Street.
(g)  Abduction of Mr Lechi Temirkhanov
27.  Mr Lechi Temirkhanov was born in 1980. On 21 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him from his uncle’s house at 1 Moskovskaya Street.
(h)  Abduction of Mr Apti Dedishov, Mr Abu Dedishov and Mr Adam Dedishov
28.  Mr Apti Dedishov was born in 1965, and his brothers, Mr Abu Dedishov and Mr Adam Dedishov, were born in 1968 and 1971. On 22 May 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted the brothers from their family house at 6 Shkolnaya Street.
29.  On 11 June 2002 residents of Mesker-Yurt found clothing belonging to the Dedishov brothers and human remains on the outskirts of the village.
(i)  Abduction of Mr Suliman Magomadov and Mr Salambek Magomadov
30.  Mr Suliman Magomadov was born in 1978 and his brother, Mr Salambek Magomadov, was born in 1980. On 23 May 2002 (in the documents submitted the date was also referred to as 25 May 2002) a group of armed servicemen abducted the brothers from their house at 19 Shkolnaya Street.
(j)  Abduction of Mr Vakha Ibragimov
31.  Mr Vakha Ibragimov was born in 1975. On 1 June 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him from the village mosque in Mesker‑Yurt (in the documents submitted the address was also referred to as 4 Gorkova Street).
(k)  Abduction of Mr Abu Dudagov
32.  Mr Abu Dudagov was born in 1981. On 5 June 2002 a group of armed servicemen abducted him from the village mosque in Mesker-Yurt (in the documents submitted the address was also referred to as 1 Sportivnaya Street).
(l)  Abduction of Mr Adam Temersultanov and subsequent discovery of his body
33.  Mr Adam Temersultanov (in the documents submitted also spelled Timersultanov) was born in 1976. On 25 May 2002 he went to the village mosque in Mesker-Yurt and stayed there for several days during the special operation, believing that it was a safe place.
34.  On 30 May 2002 the servicemen conducting the special operation took Mr Temersultanov from the mosque to a checkpoint situated on a nearby bridge for an identity check and detained him.
35.  On 4 June 2002 some villagers saw one of the military UAZ vehicles used for the special operation with Mr Temersultanov’s body in it; they then saw servicemen throw the body out of the vehicle. According to the applicants, Mr Adam Temersultanov’s body bore signs of violence.
36.  Mr Magomedrasul Magomedov was born in 1951. At the material time he and the applicants lived in the settlement of Komsomolskoye in the Kizilyurt district of Dagestan. On 23 May 2002, Mr Magomedov went to visit his sister in Mesker-Yurt, Chechnya, with his friend, Mr Kh. M.
37.  On 24 May 2002 Mr Magomedov and Mr Kh. M. wanted to leave Mesker-Yurt, but the entire settlement was cordoned off by military servicemen and all the roads leading to and from the village were blocked due to the special operation.
38.  On an unspecified date at the beginning of June 2002 Mr Magomedov and Mr Kh. M. were told by the servicemen to go to the village mosque and join the other residents who had gathered there. On the same day, the servicemen took Mr Magomedov from the mosque to the temporary filtration camp. His whereabouts remain unknown. As for Mr Kh. M., he was allowed to leave the village a few days later.
39.  In response to the Court’s request for a copy of the contents of the criminal cases opened in connection with the abductions, the Government did not furnish any documents but provided an information statement concerning the investigation of joint criminal case no. 14/90/0091-11.
40.  The applicants in Ortsuyeva and Others (application no. 3340/08) furnished the Court with copies of numerous requests for assistance in the search for their relatives lodged by them with various State authorities between 2002 and 2008 and the replies received thereto.
41.  The information submitted by the parties concerning the investigation into the abduction can be summarised as follows.
42.  Between June and July 2002 the Shali district prosecutor’s office opened criminal cases nos. 59114, 59125, 59126, 59127, 59128, 59129, 59133, 59134, 59135, 59136, 59138, 59163, 59164, and 59171 under Article 126 of the Criminal Code (abduction) in respect of the abduction of the relatives of the applicants in Ortsuyeva and Others (application no. 3340/08). It also opened criminal case no. 59166 in respect of the abduction of the relative of the applicants in Magomedova and Others (application no. 24689/10).
43.  On 6 August 2002, all of the criminal cases, along with cases nos. 59113 and 59205 opened in connection with the abduction of other residents of Mesker-Yurt, were joined under joint criminal case no. 59113.
44.  On 26 December 2002 the joint criminal case was forwarded to the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment (Объединенная группировка войск (ОГВ)) (“the UGA”) for further investigation. The applicants were not informed thereof.
45.  On an unspecified date between January 2003 and April 2007, while the proceedings were suspended, the military prosecutor’s office remitted joint criminal case no. 59113 to the Chechnya prosecutor’s office for further investigation. The applicants were not informed thereof.
46.  On 19 April 2007 the investigation of the criminal case was resumed. It was then suspended again on 20 April 2007 for failure to identify the perpetrators. The relevant decision stated, among other things:
“... the preliminary investigation has established that between 21 May and 10 June 2002 in the vicinity of Mesker-Yurt in the Shali district of the Chechen Republic, servicemen of the Russian Ministry of Defence and the Russian Ministry of the Interior together with servicemen from the Department of the Execution of Sentences of the Russian Ministry of Justice, conducted a special operation to check identity documents and identify members of illegal armed groups. During the special operation unidentified persons abducted twenty-one local residents whose whereabouts have not been established since ...”
47.  On 20 April 2007 the investigation of the joint criminal case was suspended yet again for failure to identify the perpetrators. The applicants were not informed thereof.
48.  According to the documents submitted, the special operation in Mesker-Yurt was conducted under the command of General Bornovitskiy and on an unspecified date between 2002 and 2007 the applicants and their relatives forwarded that information to the investigators. It is unclear whether any steps were taken to verify the information.
49.  From the documents submitted it appears that on various dates between 2002 and 2007 the applicants and/or their relatives gave statements to the investigating authorities. In their statements, they stressed that their relatives had been abducted by military servicemen during the special operation, and taken to the temporary filtration camp and that they had been missing ever since.
50.  Furthermore, on various dates between 2002 and 2010 the applicants lodged complaints and requests for assistance in the search for their relatives with the investigative authorities and other State bodies. In reply, they were informed either that their complaints had been forwarded to another law‑enforcement or military agency, or that the investigating authorities were taking operational search measures to establish the abducted men’s whereabouts and identify the culprits.
51.  According to the documents submitted by the applicants in Ortsuyeva and Others (application no. 3340/08), between 2002 and 2010 the applicants lodged numerous complaints and information requests concerning the search for their abducted relatives and the progress of the investigation into the matter.
52.  Between 2002 and 2010 the applicants in Magomedova and Others (application no. 24689/10) lodged a number of complaints and information requests with the authorities as well. For instance, from a copy of the decision of the Kizilyurt Town Court of 5 April 2010 declaring Mr Magomedrasul Magomedov dead, it transpires that on unspecified dates in March 2003, April 2005, May 2006, December 2009 and March 2010 the applicants requested assistance in searching for him and complained to the supervisory prosecutors of the lack of progress in the investigation. In reply, they were informed that proceedings were under way and that the necessary measures were being taken.
53.  From the documents submitted it follows that between 2002 and 2010 the investigation of the criminal case consisted mostly of taking short statements from the applicants and/or some of their relatives and forwarding numerous requests for information to various State bodies. The proceedings were suspended and resumed on several occasions for failure to identify the perpetrators. The applicants were either not informed thereof or informed with significant delays.
54.  It appears that following complaints lodged by the applicants, on 4 October 2011 the investigation of the joint criminal case was resumed and transferred again to the military authorities – the main military investigations department of the investigative committee of the Russian Federation. The relevant decision gave the following reason for the transfer:
“... the investigation has established that the military servicemen who conducted the special operation in Mesker-Yurt between 21 May and 10 June 2002 were involved in the abductions.”
The joint criminal case file was given a new number, 14/90/0091-11. It is unclear whether the applicants were informed of those decisions.
55.  On 16 December 2011 the investigation of the criminal case was suspended again for failure to identify the perpetrators. It was subsequently suspended and resumed again on several more occasions. The last suspension of the proceedings took place on 29 April 2015.
56.  From the information statement furnished by the Government, it transpires that between 2011 and 2015 the investigators questioned twenty-eight people, including the applicants, and forwarded about 310 information requests to various authorities. No new information was obtained.
57.  The proceedings are still pending.