Opposition Circassian activists distanced themselves from the blogger arrested in Maykop.
Blogger Amir Khapachev, suspected of involvement with a terrorist organization, had no connections with opposition Circassian activists. In their opinion, Khapachev held a pro-government position, although he published criticism of the authorities in Adygea.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", in September, the Maykop City Court sent a blogger from Adygea to pre-trial detention until November 23, accused under the article on participation in the activities of a terrorist organization. The court did not disclose the name of the accused, referring to him as "Citizen X". Later, the announcement of the blogger's arrest disappeared from the court's website.
According to the investigation, in September 2026, the accused, while in Krasnodar, knowingly joined the international non-governmental organization "Anti-War Committee of Russia", which the court recognized as terrorist in March 2026. The man filled out a questionnaire and sent it via Telegram to a "non-identified member of the organization".
A press service employee of the Maykop City Court confirmed to a correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot" that the announcement of the blogger's arrest was removed from the court's website. He explained that this was done by order of the court chairman.
The press service employee refused to name the defendant's surname. However, several online media outlets of Circassian organizations reported the name of the arrested person – Amir Khapachev.
Circassian activist Kase Kik called Khapachev an "absolutely pro-government" person. "This person is not one of us, [those] who fight against the authorities, criticize them, but an absolutely pro-government person who came into conflict with local clans, officials, and they decided to break him. And he, while criticizing them, did not criticize the central authority in Moscow, which is mainly to blame for all this configuration, for everything he is dissatisfied with there locally. After all, these are their [Moscow's] appointees," Kase Kik told the correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot".
A similar opinion about Khapachev was expressed by Circassian activist Rustam Khuaev (included in the register of foreign agents). "I will be honest, I learned about this guy only recently when I accidentally stumbled upon his publications on social networks... At that time, I noticed his harsh criticism of the regional authorities. I remember being surprised that the guy writes competently, you can feel the education, intelligence, but he criticizes exclusively the local authorities, completely ignoring the true reasons for what is happening. [...] Humanly, I sincerely sympathize with his family. I feel sorry for this guy, although he is not our comrade. Moreover, considering his views, he is rather our political opponent. But [...] I tried to understand his case and came to a clear conclusion: the young man was simply misled. He fell into the millstones of the political games of local elites," Khuaev stated in a video published on October 13 on the YouTube channel "Era of Circassia".
Khapachev's relatives refused to communicate with the press, a Circassian activist reported to the correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot" on October 16, who tried to arrange an interview with them.
In his Instagram account*, Amir Khapachev positioned himself as: "Public figure and Ombudsman. Journalist. Economist. Politician. Constructive opposition of Adygea. Alternative position."
He wrote about himself on June 2, 2026: "I am a patriot of my country and defend the rights of guys, participants of the SVO, whom the authorities of Adygea do not care about at all, and I absolutely do not support those who work against the interests of the state, including the authorities of Adygea."
"Today we clearly observe how the country is being cleaned up and put in order, of course, there are significant costs, yes, it is hard, but this is the price for the opportunity to exist for us and our children, grandchildren," the blogger stated on May 9.
In his blog, Khapachev also criticized local and regional authorities in Adygea, including the head of the republic Murad Kumpilov. Thus, on August 22, he called on the prosecutor's office of Adygea to check the "corruption ties" of a high-ranking republican official with the owner of a brewery.
On September 11, Amir Khapachev published a sharp personal criticism of Murad Kumpilov, and on September 14 wrote: "This team of managers today is a complete management collapse." On September 17, before the elections, Khapachev noted: "20 years of work in high positions was not enough for Kumpilov, so once again we need to support them in the elections."
He also published appeals from people who had problems with utilities, transportation, social payments (including to participants of the SVO), complaints about extortion in schools, problems in hospitals, negligence of medical commissions in assigning disabilities, shortcomings in the construction of residential complexes, poor roads.