Chechen Leader Vows Retaliation After Ukrainian Drone Strike Near His Home
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov issued new threats against Ukraine after a drone strike hit a high-rise building close to his residence in Grozny.
According to Reuters, the strike on Nov. 5 targeted a 28-story tower in the Grozny-City complex, located less than a kilometer from Kadyrov’s home. Russian officials reported no casualties, but the attack appeared to rattle the Chechen strongman, who pledged an imminent response. He accused Ukraine of selecting a civilian site “without tactical sense” and warned that Ukrainian forces would “feel a stern response” in the coming days.
A former Ukrainian government official, speaking anonymously to Fox News Digital, said Kadyrov’s remarks amount to another threat aimed directly at Zelenskyy. “The Chechens are really serious about revenge,” the official said. However, the source added that Ukrainian leadership is reacting far differently than it did two years ago: “In Kyiv they are not panicking about this like they were in 2022. Zelenskyy is now better protected, feels more powerful and is less fragile.”
Chechen involvement in attempted operations against Zelenskyy dates back to the early days of the war. The same official described how a Chechen unit aligned with Russia planned to use a metro station in Kyiv as a potential access point to Zelenskyy’s underground wartime bunker. Ukrainian officials at the time viewed that station — deep below the city center — as a major vulnerability. “They were afraid that Chechens would get to the bunker through this metro station,” the source said, recalling how Zelenskyy and top adviser Andriy Yermak urgently sought additional security.
Ultimately, the Chechen fighters were intercepted and killed before reaching the capital. “They tried to reach Kyiv somehow downtown, somehow via the river,” the former official said, “but it’s quite a complicated way to get there.”
Kadyrov’s fighters have been among the Kremlin’s most loyal and aggressive forces since the 2022 invasion. Ukrainian strikes have previously hit Chechnya, including police and training facilities, but Sunday’s attack appears to have penetrated deeper into government-linked territory. The Moscow Times reported that the damaged tower hosts regional government offices, including departments tied to the Chechen Security Council and agencies overseeing tourism and religious affairs.
With cross-border attacks increasing, Kadyrov’s latest warning suggests a more confrontational stance as the conflict increasingly spills into Russian regions. Ukrainian officials, meanwhile, have dismissed the Chechen leader’s threats as bluster.
