Chechnya has denied reports that head of the republic Ramzan Kadyrov has been hospitalized.
Akhmed Dudayev, Minister of National Policy, Foreign Relations, Press and Information, published a video with Kadyrov on his Telegram channel. In it, the men wish each other a happy New Year. “New Year with new gossip“, Dudayev says in the video.
Kadyrov confirmed that he attended Friday prayers on January 2 and the day before was busy sending military equipment to fighters in the military operation. Dudayev dismissed rumors about the Chechen leader's poor health as untrue. “I am in a fighting spirit,” answered Kadyrov, when asked about his health.
In mid-December, Kadyrov admitted that he was in “excellent health“ but did not want to live to a ripe old age, preferring instead to “leave this world while I am still loved by everyone“. He also added that he was “disgusted“ by the government.
In May, the Chechen leader posted a video in which he reflected on life and death, and in the caption he urged people not to waste their lives spreading “empty rumors“ and sowing discord. “More and more often I hear gossip about my illness - that I am dying, that I do not have much time left. First, illness and death are the journey of every person. No living person has avoided this path. "Secondly, it is not the disease or the threat that shortens life," he emphasized.