Sukhrab Akhmedov
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Sukhrab Sultanovich Akhmedov (Russian: Сухраб Султанович Ахмедов; born 23 December 1974) is an officer in the Russian Armed Forces. He held the rank of major general and commanded the 20th Combined Arms Army until May 2024.[1]
Akhmedov was born in 1974 in Grozny, in the Checheno-Ingush ASSR, though with origins from Palisma [ru; uk], Dagestan. He graduated from the Novosibirsk Higher Military Command School in 1996, starting his military service in Novosibirsk. In 2005, he graduated from the Combined Arms Academy of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in Moscow. Akhmedov is married to Margarita Vladimirovna and has three children, two daughters and a son.[2]
Career
He was the commander of the 36th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade before taking command of the 155th Separate Marine Brigade in 2009.[2]
During the Russian invasion of Ukraine from 2022, he was commander of coastal troops in southern Ukraine.[3][4] The brigade was employed in the Battle of Vuhledar, where Russian forces took heavy losses.[5][6][7] Following the campaign, complaints surfaced from surviving marines that poor military leadership was a cause of the enormous losses.[3] Public information surfaced in December 2022 that Akhmedov could be removed from his position as a result.[8] Following these rumors, Russian high command discounted the allegations of leadership inadequacies and failures from November, and by December, Novaya Gazeta reported that they had information that Akmedov would be promoted.[8]
By June 2023, Akmedov had been promoted to major general and given command of the 20th Combined Arms Army.[1] Russian sources reported that a division of the 20th had suffered about 200 casualties (100 killed, 100 wounded) in June 2023 from Ukrainian artillery while they were assembled together near Kreminna for two hours waiting for Akhmedov to deliver a motivational speech.[9][10] He was heavily criticized for this by Russian military bloggers, including a call for responsible commanders to be shot in front of their formations for such failures.[1]
In May 2024, Akhmedov was removed from his post as the commander of 20th army.[11]
References
- 1 2 3 "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, JUNE 14, 2023". Institute for the Study of War. 2023-06-14. Archived from the original on 2023-06-15.
- 1 2 Magomedov, Suleyman (27 February 2023). "Трое дагестанцев стали генералами". Zori Tabasarana (in Russian).
- 1 2 "Attempted Copying Ukrainian Tactics: Russian Commanders Waste Entire Brigade In Pavlivka". Charter 97. 8 November 2022. Archived from the original on 11 November 2022.
- ↑ "They're expendable — it's just a fact". Novaya Gazeta Europe. 10 November 2022. Archived from the original on 25 February 2023.
- ↑ Melkozerova, Veronika (12 February 2023). "Russia may have lost an entire elite brigade near a Donetsk coal-mining town". Politico. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023.
Russian forces also were losing 150-300 marines a day near Vuhledar, Dmytrashkivskyi said. He estimated the brigade to have comprised some 5,000 soldiers in all, whose members had been killed, wounded or taken prisoner.
- ↑ "Elite Russian Marine Unit 'Nearly Destroyed' Near Ukraine's Vuhledar". 14 February 2023. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023.
- ↑ Santora, Marc (15 February 2023). "Moscow's Military Capabilities Are in Question After Failed Battle for Ukrainian City". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 12 June 2023.
- 1 2 "Marine from Russia's Vladivostok shares thoughts about the war in Ukraine". Novaya Gazeta Europe. 18 December 2022. Archived from the original on 12 May 2023.
- ↑ "Waiting For General's Speech: AFU Defeat Largest Russian Army Formation Near Kreminna". Charter 97. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
- ↑ Klitina, Aleksandra; York, Chris (15 June 2023). "Russians Furious After Ukraine HIMARS Strike 'Kills 100 Troops Waiting for Commander's Speech'". Kyiv Post. Archived from the original on 15 June 2023.
- ↑ "Russia fires general who lined up troops ahead of deadly HIMARS strike". 24 May 2024.