Draft:Ali Adayev

Ali Adayev
Native name	Іалу Адаев
Nickname	Lambada
Born	1973 (1973) Checheno-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Union
Died	January 3, 1995(1995-01-03) (aged 21–22) Grozny, Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Allegiance	Soviet Union (? -1991) CMPC (1992-1993) Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (1991-1995)
Branch	Soviet Army CMPC Armed Forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Service years	1991-1995
Rank	Chief of Staff of Central Front
Known for	Radio exchange with Colonel Ivan Alekseevich Savin
Conflicts	War in Abkhazia (1992-1993) First Chechen War Battle of Grozny (November 1994) Battle of Grozny (1994-1995) †
Awards	Order of Hero of the People (Chechen Republic of Ichkeria)

Ali Adayev (1973, Checheno-Ingush ASSR - January 3rd, 1995; Grozny, Chechen Republic of Ichkeria) was a commander and Chief of Staff of the Chechen National Army, active during the First Chechen War in the defense of Grozny.

His notable radio exchange with his former commander, Colonel Ivan Alekseevich "Alik" Savin, commanding officer of the 131st Separate Motor Rifle Brigade of the Russian Army, has been immortalized in the documentary film "60 Hours of the Maykop Brigade" and is often cited as a notable example of the hopelessness, grimness and chaos of the First Battle of Grozny.

Background

Little is known about the early life of Ali Adayev, outside the fact that he was born sometime during 1973 in the Checheno-Ingush ASSR.

His first combat experience was in the War in Abkhazia, on the Abkhaz side, where he fought in the forces of the Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus, under the command of Shamil Basayev.

It is in this conflict that Adayev earned his nickname, "Lambada", during a brief encounter with Russian soldiers. According to the story, as Adayev and his men reached a Russian checkpoint, the Russian soldiers realized that they were preparing to join the Abkhaz separatist forces, and ordered them to surrender their weapons and turn back to Chechnya. Adayev, adamant to continue and join the fight, captured one of the Russian soldiers after a brief scuffle, and threatened to activate a hand-grenade if the soldier refuses to cooperate and return their weapons. To further intimidate and confuse the soldier, Adayev started giving him senseless orders, at one point telling him to start dancing the Lambada, something which his fellow Chechen fighters remembered and used as his nickname.

After returning from Abkhazia, now with combat experience and strenghtened ties to Basayev, Ali Adayev was named the Chief of Staff of the Central Front of the Chechen Republic Armed Forces, under the command of Shamil Basayev. Adayev took an active part in the November 1994 defeat of the pro-Russian opposition forces of Ruslan Labazanov, Beslan Gantemirov, Umar Avturkhanov and other members of the opposition Chechen Provisonal Council.

Battle of Grozny

As the Russian army prepared to advance into Grozny through four groups of armored columns during the New Year's Eve assault, they found it difficult to navigate the rubble-covered and narrow streets of Grozny. Without any infantry support, and often lacking radio communication, the APCs and tanks soon became easy targets for the Chechen defenders who fought in small teams of 4-6 men, each team armed with RPGs. The effect was devastating on Russian troops, who were effectively stranded in the city, facing heavy resistance.

To make matters worse, the wide dispersion of Chechen fighters throughout Grozny meant that any Russian reinforcements had to fight through several layered lines of Chechen defenses, ambushes, and mined streets before they could reach their respective units. By the early hours of January 1st, 1995; most of the Russian armored columns had stalled in the heavy resistance, and were threatened with complete destruction.

One of the brigades tasked with entering the city and capturing the "Severny" Airfield, and the Presidential Palace was the 131st Motor Rifle Brigade, part of the "Group North" (Север) armored column, advancing into Grozny from the northern city outskirts, some 3-5 kilometers north of the "Severny" airfield. On their way to their objective, the 131st Brigade would have to pass the Grozny Central Railway Station.

Commanding the 131st Brigade was Colonel Ivan Alekseevich Savin (nicknamed "Alik", from Alekseevich) and commanding the Chechen defense of the Grozny Central Railway Station was Ali Adayev. Both men knew each other from their time in the Soviet Army, where Savin had presumably been Adayev's superior, but had now faced each other as adversaries. As the Chechen fighters intercepted Russian radio communications, the 131st Brigade was cut-off, and radio communication was only possible with the Chechens surrounding them, outside the Central Railway Station.

At one point, Adayev noticed the familiar voice of his former comrade Savin, and in a desperate plea begged him to stand down, surrender, and prevent the seemingly inevitable bloodshed of both Russian and Chechen fighters:

Adayev: "Alik, before it's too late, tell your men to retreat. Don't do this, don't do this. In any case Alik, you and I will die, what's the point of all this? Who will win this? You and I will not survive, do you understand? If we, or I, see you in action, I won't show you mercy, just like you won't show us mercy, understand? It's better if you come to me as a guest, retreat your men. Have pity for their mothers, have pity for your guys, retreat them. Give the order to retreat."

Savin: "I can't give that order."

Adayev: "Alik, from the bottom of my heart I wish that you survive this, but you better leave."

Savin: "I don't have any choice. I have my orders and I will obey them in any case."

This exchange was recorded (most likely by the Chechen cameramen following Adayev) in the afternoon hours of January 1st, 1995. Shortly aftwerwards, a member of the 131st Brigade received a radio message "добро пожаловать в ад" in his headset (meaning Welcome to Hell), after which the Chechens opened fire from all sides of the Central Railway Station, starting a fierce firefight, culminating in the station being set on fire by the Chechens, so as to force the small remaining number of Russian soldiers to surrender. Colonel Savin radioed for both artillery fire and reinforcements, but no units managed to reach the station. It remains unclear why most of Colonel Savin's pleas went unanswered.

By sundown on January 1st, 1995; Colonel Savin ordered the evacuation of the most severly wounded soldiers, some forty men, with the last working Armored Personnel Carrier that the 131st Brigade had on hand. In the chaos, the APC moved in the wrong direction, heading for the city centre, and was ambushed by Chechen fighters as it turned back towards its original position. Of the forty men, only thirteen survived, all of whom were quickly taken prisoner by the Chechens. In the early hours of January 2nd, 1995; facing constant heavy fire, having run out of supplies and with no reinforcements in sight, Colonel Savin ordered the remainder of his officers and soldiers to abandon the Central Railway Station and attempt a retreat, effectively ending their engagement in the battle.

Aftermath

Adayev's words proved to be prophetic. Colonel Savin was killed by shrapnel on January 2nd, 1995; while trying to secure an abandoned Russian APC in a desperate attempt to escape the encirclement which his unit faced. Adayev himself was killed in the early hours of January 3rd, 1995; manning his position in the immediate vicinity of the Central Railway Station, in what would later be known as the "mound of military glory" due to the immense number of Chechen casualties that occured there. The cameramen of the Chechen television, Bilal Akhamadov and Rizvan Abumuslimov, who had recorded the defense of Grozny and most likely recorded the whole conversation between Savin and Adayev, also died in the same attack that killed Adayev.

By January 3rd, the 131st Brigade was effectively destroyed, having suffered 789 men killed, 75 captured, with only 160 soldiers remaining. 20 out of 26 tanks, and 102 out of 120 of their APCs had been completely destroyed. In less than 60 hours after their deployment into Grozny, the entirety of the 131st was crushed and wiped out.

By decree of the President of the Chechen Republic Dzhokhar Dudayev, Ali Adayev was posthumously awarded the Order of Hero of the People, the state award of the Chechen Republic, for his valiant and courageous defense of Grozny.

The 131st Brigade was not spared from further fighting during the war. Even though they suffered immense casualties and loss of equipment during the New Year's Assault on Grozny, they were back on the front by March 1995, and continued their operations until late 1996. By the end of the First Chechen War, the 131st Brigade alone had suffered a grand total of 1,282 casualties.