“Military troops were withdrawn from Chechnya on Dec. 31, 1996.” — Akhmad Kadyrov Quote

“Military troops were withdrawn from Chechnya on Dec. 31, 1996.”

“There is a rule of Sharia: If the enemy wants to suppress you, you are supposed to put up a strong resistance.”

“The people have already determined Chechnya's status at the referendum - it is a unit of the Russian Federation. Its political status is not to be discussed any more.”

“When I visited Chechnya, I was taken aback at first because people would regularly make jokes about kidnapping me.”

“I read all of the nonfiction that I could find on Chechnya, and all the while, I was searching for a novel that was set there. I couldn't find a single novel written in English that was set in the period of the two most recent Chechen wars.”

“I didn't know a single person who had ever been there. I wasn't even sure how to spell Chechnya.”