Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s right-hand man Adam Delimkhanov has been wounded amid Ukraine’s counteroffensive in the Zaporizhzhia region, according to Russian media.
Amid unconfirmed reports circulating in Ukrainian media that the Chechen lawmaker had been killed, the Russian Defense Ministry’s “Zvezda” Telegram channel quoted the State Duma as confirming Delimkhanov had been injured. No further details were immediately available on the severity of his injuries.
Bizarrely, Kadyrov took to Telegram to admit that he can’t get a hold of Delimkhanov and has no idea where he is. And in a wild plot twist, the Chechen leader who for months has cheered on the killing of Ukrainians is now appealing to Ukrainian authorities for help.
“I am asking Ukrainian intelligence to provide information on exactly what place and what positions were hit, so that I can still find my dear BROTHER,” Kadyrov wrote Wednesday.
“I promise a generous reward and I ask you to help.”
Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the State Duma, claimed to have “just spoken” with Delimkhanov, according to fellow lawmaker Dmitry Kuznetsov. Kuznetsov told state-controlled media that Delimkhanov was “alive and healthy” and “wishing us well.”
A Chechen commander quoted by Russia’s TASS news agency went even further and claimed Delimkhanov was “more alive than all the living” and back home in Chechnya.
The conflicting accounts have raised questions about Delimkhanov’s condition, with many wondering why Kadyrov would be unable to get in touch with his own cousin while other lawmakers have apparently been able to reach him.
Read More: Chechen Leader’s Right Hand Man Adam Delimkhanov Wounded in Ukraine