2001 Kodori crisis
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Low intensity phase: October 18/24–November 1, 2001[5][6]
| 2001 Kodori crisis | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Abkhaz–Georgian conflict, Second Chechen War and the Pankisi Gorge crisis | ||||||||
 Map of the Kodori Gorge within Abkhazia | ||||||||
| ||||||||
| Belligerents | ||||||||
 Abkhazia  Russia
|
 Georgia  Chechen Republic of Ichkeria |
 UNOMIG[9] | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||
|
Vladislav Ardzinba Valery Arshba Anri Jergenia |
Eduard Shevardnadze Aslan Abashidze[10] Koba Kobaladze[11] Emzar Kvitsiani Irakli Menagarishvili[12] Davit Tevzadze[13] Ruslan Gelayev |
Heidi Tagliavini[a] Kazi Ashfaq Ahmed[b][14] | ||||||
| Units involved | ||||||||
|
Abkhazian Armed Forces Russian Air Force[15][6] |
Monadire Georgian guerrillas[16] | Peacekeeping forces | ||||||
| Strength | ||||||||
| Unknown |
~250–500 (~1000 Gelayev aligned fighters),[17][18][19] 8 UH-1H Helicopters[20][21] | ~459[14] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | ||||||||
| Unknown | Military: 6 KIA, 2 POWs[22] | 1 accidental,[23] 1 Mil Mi-8 shot down, ~10 KIA[9][24] | ||||||
| At least 40–60 killed[25][26], ~1,700 Georgians displaced[27] | ||||||||
The 2001 Kodori crisis was a military confrontation in the Kodori Valley region of Abkhazia in October 2001. The conflict involved Georgian forces, supported by ethnic Chechen fighters, against Abkhaz separatist forces.[28] The fighting resulted in the deaths of at least 40–60 people and the aerial bombardment of three villages.[25][29][26]
Escalation and outbreak
On the evening of October 3, 2001, a joint Georgian-Chechen force of approximately 400–500 men (another source claims ~1000 men),[30] led by commander Ruslan Gelayev, entered the gorge from the Georgian side. They attacked and captured the village of Georgievskoe in the Gulripshi district of Abkhazia.[25][2]
On October 8, at approximately 9:20 AM,[31] a United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) helicopter was shot down over the Kodori Gorge near Lake Amtkeli.[32] The aircraft was struck by grenade launchers or missile projectiles,[33] resulting in the deaths of all nine or ten people on board.[34]
Intensification of combat
That same night, unidentified assailants launched an attack on the village of Naa (alternatively spelled Haa), allegedly supported by air cover. The assault resulted in the deaths of 14 people, including one Russian citizen.[35][36][37] Concurrently, President Eduard Shevardnadze offered the use of Georgian airspace to the United States for operations in Afghanistan.[38]
On October 9, nine unidentified aircraft bombed several villages in the Georgian-controlled portion of the gorge.[18][39][40] Throughout this period, the Russian Air Force conducted strikes against Chechen fighters who had infiltrated the area.[15] By October 10, Abkhaz forces reportedly surrounded roughly 200 combatants described as having Georgian, Chechen, Arab, and Azeri origins; engagement on that day left six fighters dead and two captured.[22]
Political and military shifts
On October 11, Georgia deployed reinforcements to its positions in the gorge as a defensive measure.[41] The following day, the Georgian Parliament voted 157–2 in favor of the withdrawal of CIS peacekeepers from Abkhazia.[42][43]
Air strikes by Abkhaz helicopters against rebel positions continued on October 16.[44] By October 17, Abkhaz defense officials claimed that the lower valley had returned to their control, while Georgian authorities reported ten Russian Su-25 jets violating their airspace near Mestia.[45][46] On October 30, a political crisis emerged in Tbilisi following a raid on a television station Rustavi-2, which nearly resulted in a coup against the government.[47][48]