Renewed rumors:

Chechen leader Kadyrov is “terminally ill”

(Bild: Viennareport)

According to rumors, Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov was already in a coma last year. Those close to Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin's confidant tried to refute this with video footage showing the 47-year-old out for a walk. Now there are new rumors about the Chechen's state of health.

According to the usually well-informed newspaper "Novaya Gazeta", Kadyrov is suffering from an incurable disease of the pancreas. "The state of health of 47-year-old Ramzan Kadyrov leaves no hope of recovery. And Moscow must now decide operationally how to maintain stability when the tough Chechen dictator is no more," it said in a report on Monday.

First rumors emerged in autumn
The newspaper, which was once founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov, referred to sources from Kadyrov's entourage as well as doctors in the Russian presidential administration's hospital. The president of the autonomous republic of the Russian Federation is said to have been treated there last fall. At that time, strong rumors about his serious illness emerged for the first time - fueled by long absences in public and visible problems during his rare appearances.

Long hospital stay was officially a "visit from relatives"
Officially, the speculation was denied at the time. His long stay in the Moscow clinic was disguised as a sick visit to an uncle, Novaya Gazeta now reported. In reality, however, Kadyrov himself was the patient, the journalists are convinced.

Meanwhile, a video was published on Kadyrov's Telegram channel on Monday showing him at a meeting of the regional government in Chechnya's capital Grozny. However, the recording is unlikely to quickly put an end to speculation about the politician's state of health.