CEDH · CASELAW;JUDGMENTS;CHAMBER;ENG — 3 mai 2011

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text-align:justify } .s48DB3670 { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:36pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s7CB9076 { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:0pt; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .sB06EEFA8 { width:203.97pt; display:inline-block } .s40964402 { width:201.63pt; display:inline-block }     FIRST SECTION           CASE OF KHAMZAYEV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA   (Application no. 1503/02)               JUDGMENT     STRASBOURG   3 May 2011     FINAL   15/09/2011     This judgment has become final under Article 44 § 2 (c) of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision. In the case of Khamzayev and Others v. Russia, The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting as a Chamber composed of:   Nina Vajić, President,   Anatoly Kovler,   Christos Rozakis,   Peer Lorenzen,   Elisabeth Steiner,   Khanlar Hajiyev,   George Nicolaou, judges, and André Wampach, Deputy Section Registrar, Having deliberated in private on 5 April 2011, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date: PROCEDURE 1.     The case originated in an application (no. 1503/02) against the Russian Federation lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a Russian national, Mr Abdulla Mayrbekovich Khamzayev (“the first applicant”), on 21 November 2001. On 21 August 2003 and 2 March 2004 respectively Ms Leyla Abdullayevna Khamzayeva (“the second applicant”) and Ms Eliza Sharipovna Tovgayeva (“the third applicant”), both Russian nationals, joined in the case. In June 2004 the first applicant died, and the second applicant, his daughter, expressed the wish to pursue the application on his behalf. 2.     The applicants were represented by the second applicant, who is a lawyer practising in Moscow. The Russian Government (“the Government”) were initially represented by Mr P. Laptev, former Representative of the Russian Federation at the European Court of Human Rights and subsequently by their Representative, Mr G. Matyushkin. 3.     The applicants alleged, in particular, that the life of the third applicant had been put at risk and that their property, including housing, had been severely damaged, as a result of a federal aerial attack. They relied on Articles 2 and 8 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 1. 4.     On 29 August 2004 the President of the First Section decided to grant priority to the application under Rule 41 of the Rules of Court. 5.     By a decision of 25 March 2010, the Court declared the application partly admissible. 6.     The applicants and the Government each filed further written observations (Rule 59 § 1) on the merits. THE FACTS I.     THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE 7.     The applicants were born in 1937, 1964 and 1971 respectively. The last two applicants live respectively in Moscow and in the village of Pliyevo, Ingushetia. A.     The facts 8.     At the material time the first two applicants and Mr Mayrbek Abdullayevich Khamzayev, who is not a party to the proceedings before the Court, owned property at 24a Dostoevsky Street in the town of Urus-Martan, the Chechen Republic. The third applicant was the first applicant’s relative and had been living in the house with her family with the latter’s permission since October 1997. 9 .     The first two applicants submitted a certificate dated 29 January 1982 confirming that they and Mr Mayrbek Abdullayevich Khamzayev inherited in equal shares the real estate situated at 24a Dostoyevskiy Street from their deceased relative. The certificate also indicated that the property comprised a brick house with a usable surface area of 90 square metres, a summer kitchen, an awning and other outhouses situated on a plot of land measuring about 180 square metres. The certificate was signed and stamped by a notary public. 10.     In early October 1999 the Russian Government commenced a counter-terrorism operation in the Chechen Republic. 1.     Attack of 19 October 1999 11.     On 19 October 1999 the federal military air forces attacked the town of Urus-Martan. The bombing killed six people and wounded sixteen as well as destroying thirteen houses, including the one at 24a Dostoevsky Street, and damaging twenty-seven. According to the third applicant, her belongings were destroyed with the house. 12.     In the applicants’ submission, after the attack an unexploded bomb was found at 15 Dostoevsky Street. 13.     It appears that on 10 November 1999 a video record of the site of the incident was made by local residents. 14.     On 24 January 2000 the Urus-Martan Administration ( aдминистрация г. Урус-Мартан ) drew up an evaluation report ( дефектный акт ) describing in detail the damage inflicted on the house at 24a Dostoevsky Street as a result of the attack. 15.     On an unspecified date in November 2000 the Urus-Martan Administration issued the first applicant with a certificate confirming that the house at 24a Dostoevsky Street belonging to him had been partly destroyed as a result of the bomb strike on 19 October 1999. 16 .     On 25 February 2002 the Urus-Martan Administration issued the second applicant with a certificate confirming that the house at 24a   Dostoevsky Street had been partly destroyed as a result of warfare in the Chechen Republic and that it was presently unfit for human habitation. 2.     Official investigation 17 .     After the attack the applicants sought the opening of an investigation into the events of 19 October 1999. It was mostly the first applicant who, in his own name and on behalf of the other applicants, applied, both in person and in writing, to various public bodies. (a)     Replies from military and administrative authorities 18 .     Between January 2000 and November 2001 the first applicant received a number of similar letters from the General Headquarters of the Russian Air Force ( Главный штаб Военно-воздушных сил ), the acting commander-in-chief of the Air Force ( временно исполняющий обязанности Главнокомандующего Военно-воздушными силами ) and the General Headquarters of the Armed Forces of Russia ( Генеральный штаб Вооруженных Сил РФ ), stating that the Air Force had never flown in the vicinity of Urus-Martan or launched any bomb strikes in October 1999 or later. The letters added that air strikes were only aimed at targets which had been pre-selected and identified as military and were situated at a distance of at least two to three kilometres from inhabited areas, and that the accuracy of military aircraft precluded any possibility of accidental hits on civilian buildings. As regards the first applicant’s complaint about an unexploded bomb found by the residents, he was invited to apply to “a competent body of the Ministry of the Interior” in the vicinity of his home. 19.     During the same period the first applicant also received responses from the Ministry of the Interior, the commander of the Missile Troops and Artillery ( начальник ракетных войск и артиллерии ) and the commander of the Troops of the North Caucasus Military Circuit ( командующий войсками Северо-Кавказского военного округа ), who denied any involvement by their personnel in the alleged attack of 19 October 1999 on Urus-Martan. 20 .     On 15 February 2001 an acting head of the Headquarters of military unit no. 40911 informed the first applicant that the aircraft of the Fourth Army of the Air Force and Counter Missile Defence ( Четвертая Армия Военно-воздушных сил и противоракетной обороны ) had not attacked Urus-Martan or launched an air strike on the house at 24a Dostoevsky Street, since they had not possessed any information regarding any military objects in the said area which would warrant such a strike. The letter also stated that the information allegedly received by the first applicant from the military prosecutor’s office, to the effect that on 19 October 1999 two SU ‑ 25 military aeroplanes had launched an air strike on Urus-Martan, was inaccurate. 21.     On 18 December 2001 the Office of the Plenipotentiary Representative of the Russian President in the Southern Federal Circuit ( Аппарат Полномочного представителя Президента РФ в Южном федеральном округе ) informed the first applicant that there had been no warfare on the territory of Urus-Martan in October 1999, that illegal armed formations had no military aircraft or bombs and missiles in their arsenal and that in October 1999 no incursion by foreign military aircraft into the airspace of the Russian Federation had been detected. 22 .     In a letter of 14 November 2002 the commander-in-chief of the Air Forces also informed the first applicant that, according to a register of combat air missions ( журнал учетa боевых вылетов ) and a tactical map ( карта ведения боевых действий ), on 19 October 1999 aircraft of the Russian Air Forces had not carried out any bomb strikes at a distance of one kilometre from the south-eastern outskirts of Urus-Martan. (b)     Criminal proceedings 23.     It appears that on 7 April 2000 the military prosecutor of military unit no.   20102 decided to dispense with criminal proceedings in connection with the events of 19 October 1999, stating that there was no evidence of involvement by federal military personnel in the imputed offence, and that the alleged casualties and damage could have been inflicted by fighters of illegal armed groups. 24.     On 21 July 2000 the prosecutor’s office of the Chechen Republic ( прокуратура Чеченской Республики – “the republican prosecutor’s office”) instituted criminal proceedings in connection with the aerial attack of 19 October 1999 on Urus-Martan and the killing of residents and destruction of property, under Articles 105 § 2 (a) and (e) (killing of two or more persons committed in a socially dangerous manner) and 167 § 2 (aggravated deliberate destruction of one’s property) of the Russian Criminal Code. The case file was given the number 24031 and sent to the prosecutor’s office of the Urus-Martan District ( прокуратура Урус-Мартановского района – “the district prosecutor’s office”). 25.     Between 21 July 2000 and 7 March 2001 the criminal proceedings were suspended and resumed on three occasions (see paragraphs 54-56 below). 26.     On 28 March 2001 the first applicant was acknowledged as a victim and a civil claimant in criminal case no. 24031. 27.     On 29 April 2001 the district prosecutor’s office referred the file in case no. 24031 to the military prosecutor of military unit no. 20102 ( военная прокуратура – войсковая часть 20102 ) for further investigation (see paragraph 58 below). The latter sent the case file to the republican prosecutor’s office on 11 May 2001 (see paragraph 59 below). 28.     On 6 June 2001 the investigation was resumed and then stayed on 6   July 2001 (see paragraphs 60-61 below). 29 .     By a decision of 18 March 2002 the military prosecutor’s office of the North Caucasus Military Circuit ( военная прокуратура Северо-Кавказского военного округа – “the circuit military prosecutor’s office”) refused the first applicant’s request to have criminal proceedings instituted against senior officers from the General Headquarters of the Russian Armed Forces and the General Headquarters of the Russian Air Forces who had allegedly provided him with false information concerning the attack of 19   October 1999. The decision referred to the statements of a number of officers who had claimed that the first applicant’s allegations relating to the bombing of Urus-Martan had been thoroughly investigated on several occasions and had proved to be unsubstantiated. In particular, one of the officers stated that he had personally examined the register of combat air missions ( журнал учет боевых вылетов ) and tactical map ( карта ведения боевых действий ) for the relevant period and ascertained that there had been no air strikes on the town of Urus-Martan on 19 October 1999. However, at 1.30 p.m. on that date high-explosive 250 kg aerial bombs had been launched on a group of fighters located one kilometre from the south-eastern outskirts of Urus-Martan. The decision concluded that it had since been established that the officers had provided the first applicant with full and true information and that there were no constituent elements of a crime as regards their actions. 30 .     On the same date the circuit military prosecutor’s office quashed the decision taken by the military prosecutor’s office of military unit no. 20102 on 7 April 2000. The circuit military prosecutor’s office stated, in particular, that the decision of 7 April 2000 had been based on explanations by the Head of the Headquarters of the Group “West”, Colonel K., and an extract from the register of combat air missions, indicating coordinates which had been attacked by a pair of SU-25 planes on 19   October 1999 and which had been situated twenty-seven kilometres from Urus-Martan. The decision of 18   March 2002 went on to say that an inquiry carried out in connection with the first applicant’s complaint against senior high-ranking officers from the General Headquarters of the Russian Armed Forces and the Main Headquarters of the Russian Air Forces had established that no air strikes on the town of Urus-Martan had been planned or carried out on 19   October 1999, and that the closest area attacked by a pair of federal planes on that date had been located one kilometre from Urus-Martan, in an area where members of illegal armed formations had been stationed. The decision concluded that in view of discrepancies in the information obtained, the inquiry could not be said to have been complete, and that therefore the decision of 7 April 2000 should be set aside. 31.     On 25 August 2002 the district prosecutor’s office resumed the proceedings in case no. 24031. Thereafter in the period between 25   September 2002 and 18 April 2003 the investigation was stayed and resumed eight times (see paragraphs 64-71 below). During that period, on 17 October 2002 and 21 January 2003 respectively, the district prosecutor’s office granted victim status to the second and third applicants and declared them civil claimants in criminal case no. 24031. 32.     In a letter of 3 September 2003 the district prosecutor’s office informed the first applicant that a number of investigative actions in criminal case no.   24031 had been taken, and in particular the scene of the incident had been inspected, fragments of bombs had been seized, new expert examinations had been ordered, and the military commander of the Chechen Republic ( военный комендант Чеченской Республики ) had been requested to take steps aimed at disposing of unexploded air bombs found in the residential district of Urus-Martan. The letter further stated that on 15   March 2003 the criminal proceedings in case no. 24031 had been stayed, and on 19 March 2003 the case file had been transmitted to the republican prosecutor’s office. At present the investigation was being carried out by the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment. 33.     On 17 November 2003 the investigation into the attack of 19   October 2003 had been terminated with reference to the absence of constituent elements of a crime in the actions of high-ranking military officers (see paragraphs 74-82 below). According to the applicants, it was only the first applicant who had been informed of this decision, and none of the applicants had been furnished with a copy. 34.     It appears that the first applicant then unsuccessfully applied to prosecutors at various levels in an attempt to obtain a copy of the decision of 17 November 2003. 35.     In a letter of 15 March 2004 the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment informed the first applicant that the criminal proceedings in connection with the bomb strike of 19 October 1999 had been discontinued on 17 November 2003 and that a letter informing him of that decision had been sent to him on the same date. 36.     On 26 March 2004 the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment informed the first applicant that the decision to discontinue the criminal proceedings in connection with the attack of 19   October 1999 had been lawful and well-founded, as it had been established during the investigation that the federal aircraft had bombed fortified command points, bases and ammunition depots of the illegal armed groups rather than any residential areas of Urus-Martan. The letter also stated that the first applicant was entitled to make a claim for compensation for his destroyed property. 37 .     On 10 May 2004 the first applicant complained to the Supreme Court of the Chechen Republic about the refusal of the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment to furnish him with a copy of the decision of 17 November 2003, which prevented him from appealing against that decision in court. It is unclear whether this complaint was examined. 38.     On 7 June 2004 the Main Military Prosecutor’s Office ( Главная военная прокуратура ) transmitted the first applicant’s complaints about the prosecutors to the military prosecutor of the United Group Alignment for examination. 39 .     In a letter of 12 July 2004 the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment stated that the file of the criminal case opened in connection with the attack by federal aircraft on Urus-Martan on 19 October 1999 had been classified as secret, and therefore the first applicant’s request to provide him with the case-file materials could not be granted. It also transpired from the letter that the criminal proceedings had been discontinued, that the first applicant was entitled to institute civil proceedings, and that the case file could be submitted to a court upon the latter’s order. 40 .     In two letters of 31 July 2004 the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment informed the first applicant, in reply to his complaints of 26 April and 26 May 2004, that criminal proceedings instituted in connection with the aerial attack on Urus-Martan on 19 October 1999 had been discontinued on 17 November 2003 in the absence of the constituent elements of a crime in the attack, and that the criminal case file was classified as secret. 41.     On 2 August 2004 the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment replied to the first applicant’s complaint of 26 May 2004, stating that the preliminary investigation in case no. 34/00/0008-03 had established that in October 1999 the town of Urus-Martan had been occupied by Islamic extremists, amounting to over 1,500 persons, who had based their headquarters in the town, had fortified it and had not been prepared to surrender, and that in such circumstances the federal command had taken a decision to carry out pinpoint bomb strikes against the bases of illegal fighters in Urus-Martan. 42 .     In a letter of 10 August 2004 the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment confirmed, in reply to the first applicant’s complaint of 20 April 2004, that the criminal proceedings concerning the attack of 19 October 1999 on Urus-Martan had been terminated. The letter also stated that the case-file materials had been classified as secret. 3.     Proceedings for compensation 43 .     On an unspecified date in 2000 the first applicant issued civil proceedings against the Government of Russia, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Defence and a number of prosecutors in the Basmanny District Court of Moscow (“the District Court”). He sought damages in connection with the allegedly improper handling of his complaints by prosecutors as well as pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage for his destroyed property. 44.     On 14 November 2000 the Urus-Martan Administration replied to a query of the District Court, having confirmed that as a result of the air strike on 19 October 1999 six residents of Urus-Martan had been killed and several wounded, and that it held evaluation reports in respect of the destroyed and damaged houses. 45.     In a letter of 19 January 2001 the Urus-Martan Administration again stated in reply to another query from the District Court, that an air strike of 19 October 1999 had resulted in six residents being killed and several wounded, as well as damage to dozens of houses, including the one at 24a   Dostoevsky Street. This latter house was unfit for human habitation, and its poor state of repair had been reflected in an evaluation report previously submitted to the District Court. 46 .     On 24 May 2001 the district prosecutor’s office furnished the District Court with a report on the results of the investigation in criminal case no. 24031. The document stated that on 19 October 1999 an unidentified aircraft had launched a strike on Urus-Martan, with the result that six residents had died, sixteen were wounded, thirteen private houses were destroyed, including that of the first applicant, and twenty-seven houses were damaged. In this connection, on 27 July 2000 the republican prosecutor’s office had instituted criminal proceedings in case no. 24031 and the first applicant had been declared a victim and civil claimant in this case. The events of 19 October 1999 had been confirmed by forty-eight witnesses listed in the report and other witnesses, reports of the inspection of the crime scene and forensic examination as well as other evidence, such as fragments of exploded bombs seized from the first applicant’s house and a video record of the site of the incident, dated 10 November 1999. Finally, the report stated that, as the illegal armed groups had no aircraft, on three occasions the criminal case had been sent for further investigation to the military prosecutor’s office, which, however, had returned it on various grounds, thus protracting the investigation and making it difficult to identify the pilots involved in the attack of 19 October 1999. 47.     On 11 May 2001 the District Court delivered its judgment, holding that the public bodies had properly examined the first applicant’s complaints and given him timely responses, and therefore had not infringed his rights, including the right to receive information. As to the first applicant’s claims regarding compensation for the destroyed property, the court held that they could not be granted, as “the federal armed forces had conducted a military operation in the Chechen Republic by virtue of presidential and governmental decrees that had not been found unlawful”. The court further stated that the destruction of the first applicant’s house could not be imputed to the defendants, since the military actions had been carried out not only by the federal troops but by the illegal armed groups as well, and that no causal link had been established between the defendants’ actions and the damage sustained by the claimant. The first applicant’s claims for compensation in respect of non-pecuniary damage could not be granted either, as he had not submitted any evidence that the defendants’ actions had caused him any physical, mental or emotional suffering, and had not indicated the amount of the compensation sought. In view of the above, the court concluded that there were no grounds to grant the first applicant’s claims. 48 .     On 4 October 2001 the Moscow City Court upheld the first-instance judgment on appeal, relying largely on the District Court’s reasoning. B.     Documents submitted by the Government 49.     In December 2006, following communication to them of the present application, the Government produced a copy of the investigation file in case no. 34/00/0008-03 (initially no. 24031) opened in respect of the attack of 19 October 1999 on Urus-Martan. The materials produced ran to approximately 1,200 pages and seemed to represent a copy of the major part of, if not entire, case file. These documents, in so far as relevant, can be summarised as follows. (a)     Documents relating to the conduct of the investigation and informing the applicants of its progress 50.     By a decision of 21 July 2000 the republican prosecutor’s office instituted criminal proceedings in connection with the first applicant’s complaint concerning a bomb strike on a residential quarter of Urus-Martan on 19 October 1999, resulting in six persons being killed, sixteen wounded, with thirteen houses being destroyed and twenty-seven damaged. The proceedings were brought under Articles 105 § 2 (aggravated murder) and   167 § 2 of the Russian Criminal Code, and the case was transferred to the district prosecutor’s office for investigation. A letter of the same date informed the first applicant of the decision to institute criminal proceedings but did not indicate the date of that decision. 51 .     In a letter of 31 August 2000 the republican prosecutor’s office drew the attention of the district prosecutor’s office to “unprecedented procrastination” of the investigation in case no. 24031. The letter stated, in particular, that for a period of one month the investigator in charge had not performed any investigative action and had not questioned victims or witnesses. It instructed the district prosecutor’s office to revive the investigation and to establish the circumstances of the case. In particular, it was necessary to interview all the victims of the bomb strike in question, to grant them victim status and declare them civil claimants; to question the relatives of those deceased and grant them victim status; to inspect the scene of the incident using photographic and video devices, and to establish and interview eyewitnesses of the events in question. 52 .     On an unspecified date in October 2000 the investigator in charge sought the competent prosecutor’s authorisation for an extension of the term of the preliminary investigation. The relevant decision listed the findings made by the investigation up to that time. It referred, in particular, to statements of a number of residents of the quarter that had come under attack on 19 October 1999 who, being eyewitnesses to the incident, insisted that the military planes had been flying at a low altitude and that the pilots could therefore have clearly seen that they were targeting a residential quarter. The decision further referred to the residents’ statements to the effect that no illegal fighters had ever lived in their quarter and that property occupied by the rebel fighters had been located on the outskirts of Urus-Martan and by that time had already been hit by federal bombers, and that therefore there had been no reason to bomb a residential quarter inhabited by civilians. The decision went on to note that during the inspection of the scene of the incident large metal fragments of aerial bombs had been found and that, in addition, unexploded bombs were still lying in the courtyards of a number of properties. The decision stated that the evidence obtained proved the involvement of the federal air forces in the attack of 19 October 1999, this finding being confirmed by eyewitness statements, photographs and video records, evaluation reports attesting to the inflicted damage and a report on the inspection of the scene of the incident. 53.     In a letter of October 2000 (the exact date is illegible) the military prosecutor’s office of military unit no. 20102 returned the case file to the republican prosecutor’s office stating that a number of formal requirements had not been complied with. The latter referred the case file to the district prosecutor’s office on 30 October 2000 ordering it to remedy the defects. 54 .     A decision of 21 January 2001 by the district prosecutor’s office ordered the suspension of the criminal proceedings. It stated that all possible investigative measures had been performed but it had not been possible to establish who was responsible. 55.     In a decision of 7 February 2001 a supervising prosecutor set aside the decision of 21 January 2001 as unfounded and premature. It ordered that the investigation be resumed, that eyewitnesses to the attack be questioned, that the results of medical forensic examinations and ballistic tests be included in the case file and that the first applicant be granted victim status in connection with pecuniary losses that he had incurred as a result of the attack. 56 .     In a decision of 7 March 2001 the district prosecutor’s office ordered a suspension of the criminal proceedings in case no. 24031, stating that all investigative measures indicated in the supervising prosecutor’s decision of 7 February 2001 had been carried out, but it had not been possible to establish who was responsible. 57.     In a letter of 14 April 2001 the district prosecutor’s office replied to the first applicant that his request for certified copies of decisions instituting criminal proceedings in case no. 24031 and extending the term of the preliminary investigation “had no basis in law” and therefore could not be granted. The letter also indicated that the term of the preliminary investigation into the said criminal case had been extended until 21 January 2001 and that on 10 October 2000 it had been sent to a military prosecutor’s office, which had returned it on 26 October 2000 because of procedural defects. The letter went on to say that ballistic tests had been ordered in the case on 16 November 2000; however, those tests had not yet been carried out. It then noted that on 21 January 2001 the investigation had been suspended, then resumed on 7 February 2001 and again stayed on 7 March 2001. The letter also assured the first applicant that his requests in the present case would be recorded in the case file and taken into consideration during further investigation. 58 .     In a decision of 29 April 2001 the district prosecutor’s office ordered that the case file be transferred to the military prosecutor’s office of military unit no. 20102 for further investigation. The decision stated that it had been established that the destruction of houses and other property and the deaths and injuries of residents of Urus-Martan on 19 October 1999 had been due to an aerial strike by aircraft of the federal armed forces. This fact had been confirmed by witnesses and victims and by the inspection of the site of the incident, where fragments of aerial bombs and missiles had been found. The involvement of federal military personnel in that attack was obvious, since the illegal armed formations had no aircraft, and the case file therefore had to be transferred to the military prosecutor for further investigation, in order to identify the military unit and military personnel which had committed the offence in question. 59 .     In a letter of 11 May 2001 the military prosecutor’s office of military unit no. 20102 transmitted the case file to the republican prosecutor’s office. The letter stated that the district prosecutor’s office’s conclusion that on 19   October 1999 Urus-Martan had come under a bomb strike was based on contradictory witness statements and had no objective confirmation. The letter pointed out, in particular, that whilst some of the witnesses had stated that they had seen planes that had allegedly carried out the strike, some other witnesses had indicated that they had not been able to see planes as on the day in question it had been cloudy and misty. Moreover, according to the letter, there were also discrepancies in witness statements concerning the overall number of planes that had allegedly participated in the attack and their colour. The letter went on to note that the origin of the ammunition fragments seized from two of the properties, that had allegedly come under the attack on 19 October 1999 (see paragraph 88 below), had not been established and it had not been ascertained how it had been possible that those fragments could still be found a year after the attack. At the end, the letter stated that at the same time the command of the United Groups Alignment and the Russian Ministry of Defence had reported that on 19   October 1999 the federal aircraft had not carried out any strikes on Urus-Martan. 60 .     By a decision of 6 June 2001 the district prosecutor’s office resumed the investigation. 61 .     A decision of 6 July 2001 ordered that criminal proceedings be suspended owing to the failure to establish the alleged perpetrators and that the case file be transferred to the military prosecutor’s office. The decision was similar to that of 29 April 2001. It stated, in particular, that the involvement of the federal aircraft in the attack had been established by eyewitness statements and the results of ballistics tests, which had confirmed that fragments found at the scene of the incident had been those of artillery shells and aerial bombs. It also stated that an unexploded aerial bomb had remained on the ground near the house at 15 Dostoyevskiy Street since the attack of 19 October 1999. 62 .     In a letter of 15 May 2002 the republican prosecutor’s office returned case no. 24031 to the district prosecutor’s office for further investigation. The letter stated that upon the study of the case-file materials it had been established that the investigation had been vitiated by flagrant violations of procedural law with the result that the military prosecutor’s office had refused to take over the case. The letter then listed in detail the procedural breaches that had occurred during the inspection of the scene of the incident and the seizure and examination of ammunition fragments found there and stated that as a result of those breaches the seized splinters could not be admitted in evidence. The letter further noted that to date those who had suffered pecuniary damage had not been declared civil claimants and that contradictions in eyewitness statements had not yet been resolved. The letter also stated that although the case had repeatedly been returned to the district prosecutor’s office because of all those shortcomings, they had not been remedied. 63.     By a decision of 25 August 2002 the district prosecutor’s office resumed the criminal proceedings. 64 .     A decision of 25 September 2002 ordered that the investigation be stayed. The decision stated briefly that all possible investigative measures had been taken but that it had not been possible to establish the alleged perpetrators. 65.     By a decision of 1 October 2002 the district prosecutor’s office resumed the investigation. The decision stated that, as requested by the first applicant, it was necessary to question as witnesses a number of high-ranking military officers who had participated in the counter-terrorism operation in the Chechen Republic. 66.     A decision of 1 November 2002 ordered the suspension of the criminal proceedings. It stated that after the reopening of the investigation on 1 October 2002, the investigating authorities had sent a request to interview a number of high-ranking officers, carried out an expert examination of the first applicant’s orchard lost during the attack in question and granted victim status to the second applicant. Therefore, according to the decision, all possible investigative actions had been taken. 67 .     A decision of 10 January 2003 set aside the decision of 1 November 2002 as unfounded, stating that the instructions of the republican prosecutor’s office to remedy the procedural breaches had not been complied with. In particular, there had been breaches of procedural law in the seizure of ammunition fragments, which were therefore inadmissible evidence. Moreover, a number of persons who had suffered losses as a result of the incident had not been declared civil claimants in the case. Also, the contradictions in eyewitnesses’ descriptions of the attack had not been resolved. The decision thus ordered that the proceedings be resumed. 68.     A decision of 10 February 2003 ordered the suspension of the criminal proceedings. It listed investigative measures taken in January 2003, including the seizure of splinters, ordering their expert examination, granted the status of civil claimant to the victims and concluded that all the investigative actions that had been possible in the absence of those responsible had been carried out. 69.     A decision of 15 February 2003 ordered that the investigation be resumed, stating that a number of investigative actions should be carried out in the case. In a letter of February 2003 (the exact date is unclear), the first applicant was informed of the recent developments in the case. 70.     By a decision of 15 March 2003 the criminal proceedings in case no.   24031 were adjourned owing to the failure to establish the alleged perpetrators. 71 .     By a decision of 18 April 2003 a prosecutor of the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment ordered that the investigation be resumed. It can be ascertained that at this stage the case was assigned the number 34/00/0008-03. 72.     On the same date the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment informed the district prosecutor’s office of this decision and invited it to notify those declared victims of the reopening of the case. In another letter of the same date the military prosecutor’s office of the United Group Alignment apprised the first applicant of its decision to resume the investigation. 73.     In a decision of 18 April 2003 the investigator in charge sought the authorisation of a competent prosecutor to extend the term of the preliminary investigation until 18 August 2003. The decision stated that a large number of investigative actions had to be taken. In particular, it was necessary to question high-ranking officers in command of the counter-terrorism operation in the Chechen Republic; to identify and interview an officer in charge of the operation in Urus-Martan on 19 October 1999, an officer in command of the pilots who had carried out bomb strikes on Urus-Martan on the date in question and the pilots themselves; to examine and, if necessary, seize relevant military documents, including a register of combat air missions and tactical maps; to examine the materials of enquiries carried out by the military authorities in connection with the first applicant’s complaints about the attack; to conduct expert examinations; and to perform other necessary investigative actions. (b)     Decision of 17 November 2003 74 .     A decision of 17 November 2003 terminated the criminal proceedings in case no. 34/00/0008-03. It stated, in particular, that pursuant to Presidential Decree no. 1255c of 23 September 1999, the Russian authorities had launched a counter-terrorism operation in the Northern Caucasus for the disarmament and liquidation of illegal armed groups and restoration of constitutional order. 75 .     The decision went on to say that the operation had been carried out by the federal armed forces and that in late September 1999 the Group “West” had been formed under the command of General Major Sh. In the same period the United Air Forces Group had been created under the command of General Lieutenant G. In early October 1999 the federal forces had commenced the counter-terrorism operation in the Chechen Republic. 76 .     According to the decision, the authorities, via the mass-media and leaflets, had ordered the illegal fighters to stop their criminal activity and lay down arms. The authorities had warned the local population of the possible use of aircraft and artillery in case of organised resistance by the illegal armed groups to the federal forces. In response, the rebel fighters had offered fierce armed resistance and had organised fortified defence in local settlements, prohibiting the residents from leaving their houses and using them as human shields. 77 .     The decision further stated that in the middle of October the town of Urus-Martan had been occupied by Islamic extremists – Wahhabis – amounting to over 1,500 persons, who had based their headquarters in the town and had significantly fortified it. In particular, they had located their command points in the central part of the town, in school no. 7 and the building of the town administration and had kept captives and local residents detained for refusal to collaborate with them in the basements of those buildings. The illegal fighters had also had a number of radio relays and television re-transmitters in the town which they had actively used for detecting movements of the federal forces. On the outskirts the rebel fighters had located their bases and a centre for subversive training. 78 .     The decision referred, in particular, to witness interviews of Mr Af. and Mr Chay., intelligence officers, who had carried out reconnaissance in Urus-Martan in the relevant period. They both stated that the town had been occupied by the Wahhabis, who had significantly fortified it and prepared for long-term defence. According to them, the depth of defence extended to three to four quarters from the outskirts towards the town centre; the fighters had dug trenches and dugouts, filled pits with oil to be able to explode them on the approach of the federal forces, and organised numerous firing posts in residential buildings. Mr Af. also stated that the majority of the local residents had left the town, and that an insignificant number of residents remaining in Urus-Martan had been forcibly kept by the extremists who had used them as human shields. The decision also referred to statements of Mr   Kh., a resident of Urus-Martan, who pointed out, in particular, that at the material time more than half of the civilian residents had left the town because of persecutions by illegal fighters, who had detained, robbed, killed and used as human shields those residents who had shown resistance to them. 79 .     The decision also stated that in October 1999 the illegal armed groups had led active military actions against the federal forces, using surface-to-air missile systems and large-calibre firearms against the federal aircraft. In particular, the extremists had attacked the federal aircraft from the roofs of high-rise buildings in Urus-Martan with the result that a number of planes and helicopters had been shot down and the pilots either killed or captured. Such incidents had taken place on 1, 2 and 4 October 1999. Also, according to intelligence data, a new group of approximately 300 fighters had arrived at Urus-Martan for reinforcement around 18 October 1999. 80 .     In those circumstances, on 18 October 1999 General Major Sh. had issued order no. 04, which in paragraph 2 prescribed that aircraft resources be assigned for tactical support to the Western Alignment and that illegal fighters’ bases, ammunition depots and other important targets outside the reach of the federal ar