The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) awarded a total of 46 thousand euros to the relatives of the founder of the Chernovik newspaper, Khadzhimurad Kamalov, and the deputy editor-in-chief of Novoye Delo, Akhmednabi Akhmednabiev, who were killed in Dagestan in 2011 and 2013. The decision was published on the court's website.
Akhmednabiev was first attacked with a weapon in January 2013. Then they shot at him near the house, but the bullets hit the car. They did not open a case of attempted murder — the security forces classified the attack under articles of damage to property and illegal use of firearms.
In early July of the same year, the deputy editor-in-chief of “Novoye Delo” and a correspondent of the “Caucasian Knot” was shot in his car. On the same day, investigators opened a case of murder and damage to property. The investigation was suspended and resumed several times. After 2018, there was no information on the case.
Kamalov was shot dead in December 2011 in Makhachkala at the entrance to the editorial building. In connection with his death, a case was opened under articles of murder and illegal possession of weapons.
The investigation lasted almost nine years, until the court began to consider the case against three perpetrators and the customer — former Deputy Prime Minister of Dagestan Shamil Isaev. On July 1, 2022, the Southern District Military Court sentenced the accused to prison terms from 16 to 24 years.
The court in Strasbourg concluded that the Russian authorities violated the article on the right to life (Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights ). “The applicants argued that the national authorities did not protect the lives of their relatives by failing to conduct a proper investigation into the threats to Akhmednabiyev and Kamalov,” the ECHR clarified.