Early in 1999, Kadyrov gave a speech before the armed militia telling them that the nation was behind them, that the recent outbreak of violence was the fault of Christian and foreign involvement, and that they should continue on fighting with persistence and trust.

[8] But by the autumn of 1999, Kadyrov – a leading figure in the resistance movement – decided to abandon the insurgency and offered his support to the Russian federal forces in the Second Chechen War.

[9] Aslan Maskhadov immediately fired him from the Chief Mufti chair, although this decree was never accepted by Kadyrov, who abdicated himself a few months later due to his civilian chairman career.

He also advocated numerous amnesty campaigns for former rebel fighters, who were allowed to join Chechen police and loyalist militia forces if they surrendered.

[11] His younger son, Ramzan Kadyrov, led his father's militia and was appointed prime minister and president of Chechnya in March 2007.

On 9 May 2004, an explosion ripped through the VIP seating at the Dinamo football stadium during a mid-morning Soviet Victory Day parade in the capital city of Grozny, instantly killing Kadyrov.

[13] Some 56 others were wounded, including Colonel General Valery Baranov, the commander of Russian forces in Chechnya, who lost a leg in the explosion.