Sources reported the detention of relatives of the attacker on security forces in Gudermes.

The attacker on police officers in Gudermes may have had mental health issues, and the motive for his actions is still unclear. After the incident, security forces began detaining relatives and acquaintances of the attacker, sources reported.

Opposition activist Hasu stated that he knows the person who attacked the security forces in Gudermes, and several residents reported his mental health issues. The reasons for the attack remain unclear.

"Several people reported that he was indeed mentally ill. What prompted him to do this is unclear. But it seems that this is not a classic attack," Hasu told a correspondent from "Caucasian Knot".

Eyewitnesses did not notice any quarrel or conflict that could have preceded the attack, Hasu reported. According to him, the attacker himself was injured in the leg and was taken to a hospital in Grozny, while his relatives and other young people were detained and interrogated. "Eyewitnesses at the scene said that it all started in a way that did not resemble any quarrel or conflict. They didn't even understand how he attacked them. His family and young people were, as usual, kidnapped and interrogated. He himself was injured in the leg, and then he was taken to a hospital in Grozny. What happened next has not been reported to us yet," the activist said.

Information about the incident is scarce, and there are no prerequisites for noticeable political activity in Chechnya, noted Chechen political scientist Ruslan Kutaev*. "I believe this is about some domestic conflict," he told a correspondent from "Caucasian Knot".

On the evening of September 7, security forces cordoned off the neighborhoods of Gudermes adjacent to the administration building, reported one of the readers of "Caucasian Knot".

According to him, a man armed with a knife attacked two police officers. According to one version, one police officer was seriously injured, and the attacker was killed. According to another version, two police officers were injured, and the attacker was also injured and detained.

Detentions in Gudermes continued the next day, reported the opposition Telegram channel ("Caucasian Knot" is ready to disclose this source upon request). According to its information, relatives and acquaintances of the attacker, as well as young people unrelated to him, are being brought to the department.

As of 08:00 Moscow time on September 8, there are no comments on the websites of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Chechnya and the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation regarding the information about the attack on security forces in Gudermes and reports of the detention of relatives and acquaintances of the attacker.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that after attacks on security forces in Chechnya, relatives of the alleged participants are regularly subjected to detentions and other forms of collective responsibility. For example, after a 17-year-old teenager attacked a police post in Achkhoy-Martan on April 7, 2025, the opposition Telegram channel reported the detention of all relatives of the attacker, including underage cousins.

On April 9, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov ordered the expulsion from the republic of the relatives of the organizers and the perpetrator of the attack. Later, activists reported the seizure of property from the relatives of the teenager and pressure on his distant relatives as well.

* included in the register of foreign agents by the Ministry of Justice of Russia.

** the activities of the Meta company (which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.