Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov awarded his son, 15-year-old Adam Kadyrov, with the highest regional award after the minor beat an inmate accused by Russian authorities of supporting Ukraine.
After awarding Adam Kadyrov with the Hero of the Chechen Republic title, Kadyrov's right-hand man Adam Delimkhanov called him a "bright example of an exceptionally competent, comprehensively educated and purposeful young man."
The announcement comes after Russian citizen Nikita Zhuravel, while being incarcerated, was beaten by Adam Kadyrov.
In May, Zhuravel was arrested for allegedly "burning the Koran in front of a mosque" in the Russian city of Volgograd.
Russian law enforcement accused Zhuravel of cooperating with the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) and opened a criminal case against him for "insulting religious feelings."
If found guilty, Zhuravel can spend up to a year in prison.
Soon, Zhuravel was transferred to Russia's predominantly muslim Chechen Republic without any legal grounds.
In August, Zhuravel accused Adam Kadyrov of beating him at a pre-trial detention center, according to the Russian independent media outlet Meduza.
Days later, Ramzan Kadyrov published a video of his son violently beating Zhuravel. Kadyrov also praised such an act.
"He beat him up and did the right thing," Kadyrov wrote on Telegram.
The Chechen Republic under Kadyrov has been described as one the most dangerous parts of the world.
Criminal activity in the region have included forced disappearances and abductions, unlawful imprisonment, torture, female genital mutilation and extrajudicial killings by authorities targeting members of the LGBTQ+.
The U.K. and the U.S. has imposed sanctions on Kadyrov, with officials accusing him of heading "an administration involved in disappearances and extrajudicial killings."
Rachel Amran
