Chechen President Kadyrov orders police to shoot protesters in the head

Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov said at a meeting with employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Russian National Guard that the Chechen authorities will be able to prevent mass riots in Chechnya.

In case of public unrest, the police should make three warning shots in the air and then aim into rioters' heads, Kadyrov said. 

"If we have even one person going out to unsanctioned riots, he shall be detained and imprisoned. Alternatively, fire three warning shots in the air and after that, if the person does not comply with the law, fire the fourth shot in his forehead. They won't come out again,” Kadyrov said.

Law enforcement officers should regard this statement as an order, he added.

Kadyrov's remarks came in response to recent anti-Semitic protests in Makhachkala, Dagestan. On October 29, a crowd of aggressive men arrived at the airport in Makhachkala after it was said that an airplane with Israeli refugees landed in the capital of Dagestan. The rioters forced their way onto the runway and into service areas, where they started looking for passengers from Israel. As many as 20 people were hurt in the riots.

On October 30, Ramzan Kadyrov commented on the riots and calls for violence against Israelis over the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. According to Kadyrov, such actions are unacceptable.

"The Israeli regime has showed the world its true face by inflicting real mass terror against civilians. But you cannot follow the lead of Russia's enemies and rock the boat from within: you cannot hold rallies, pogrom airports in search of people of Jewish nationality and call for violence. Such actions are unacceptable in any case and will be suppressed very harshly,” the head of the Chechen Republic wrote on Telegram.