Kadyrov, Ramzan Akhmadovich, 1976–, Chechen rebel and political leader. The son of assassinated (2004) Chechnya president Akhmad Kadyrov, he was a guerilla leader in the first Chechen war (1994–96). Along with his father, he changed sides in 1999 and joined with Russian forces in the second war. He was named Chechnya's deputy prime minister in 2004, became prime minister in 2005, and then president in 2007 (renamed imam in 2010). Kadyrov has ruled Chechnya brutally, but he has largely pacified it and has overseen reconstruction projects. He has been accused of numerous human rights violations and of the assassinations of opponents and critics.
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