Former Akhmat Fighter Defects to Ukraine, Reveals Other Such Cases

A former fighter with the Chechen Akhmat unit defected to Ukraine and joined the International Legion of the Main Intelligence Directorate (DIU) of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine.

The Chechen man told this in a video by Dmitry Karpenko.

The volunteer’s name is Magomed. Before defecting to the Ukrainian side, he had been held captive by Ukraine for nearly a year—since August 29, 2025.

At first, he fought near Svitlodarsk, and later near Bakhmut, where, among other things, he helped evacuate the bodies of the fallen. After that, he and his unit were transferred to Horlivka.

Magomed recalls that two Chechens had already defected to the Ukrainian forces before him, after which the command tightened its supervision of the soldiers, including by checking their phones.

Magomed surrendered to a Ukrainian drone. According to him, it was a risky move, as if the drone had turned out to be Russian, it could have dropped munitions on them, given previous instances of Chechens defecting to the Ukrainian side.

As they made their way toward the Ukrainian positions, the soldiers dropped everything the Chechens needed—medicines, painkillers, water, and a radio.

However, during the transfer, a Russian FPV drone attacked the Chechens, killing one of them.

After the defection, Magomed was met by Ukrainian military personnel and handed over to the Assault Brigade Liut of the National Police of Ukraine after which he was taken prisoner.

The Chechen man also said that the Russians had killed his brother, attributing the death to an ‘epileptic seizure.’ After that, Magomed decided to fight against the Russians alongside other Chechens.

Earlier, on July 14, it was reported that in Kadyrovites Akhmat special forces unit, there are approximately six recruits from other regions of Russia for every Chechen.