Aza Bataeva

Aza Bataeva
Native name	Аза Нуритовна Батаева
Born	(1983-05-13)May 13, 1983 Gekhi, Urus-Martanovsky District, Chechnya, Russia
Died	2017 (aged 33–34) Mosul, Iraq
Genres	Pop
Instruments	Vocals

Aza Nuritovna Bataeva (; 13 May 1983 – 2017) was a Chechen pop singer who gained regional recognition in the 2000s. She became the subject of controversy in Russian-language media after reports alleged that she had traveled to territory controlled by the militant group Islamic State. Her reported death in Mosul, Iraq, in 2017 was covered by several regional media outlets.

Early life and career

According to regional reporting, Bataeva was born in the village of Gekhi in the Urus-Martanovsky District of Chechnya.

Bataeva was known publicly under the stage names Aza and later AZiA. She was described by regional media as a "well-known Chechen pop singer".

Bataeva’s song "Lonely Rain" was included in the shortlist for the 2008 Eurovision song selection. Her other songs included "Я девушка чеченская" ("I’m a Chechen Girl"), "Безам", and other Chechen-language and Russian-language releases.

2016 reports and controversy

In April 2016, Bataeva became the subject of widespread attention in Russian-language and North Caucasus media after reports circulated alleging that she had traveled to territory associated with the Islamic State (IS). Reports centered on a video in which a woman, alleged by some viewers to be Bataeva, appeared in full Islamic dress and tore up documents on camera.

Caucasian Knot reported that the passport shown in the video was allegedly issued in Bataeva’s name, but also stated that it did not possess independent confirmation that the woman shown in the footage was in fact Bataeva, noting that the woman’s face was not fully visible. It further stated in January 2016 Bataeva had been added to the Rosfinmonitoring list of persons for whom there was information concerning involvement in extremist activity or terrorism.

Public reaction to the reports was mixed. Social media users and commentators questioned whether the video had truly been filmed in a war zone and whether the woman shown was actually Bataeva.

In an article on anti-terrorist prevention among youth, sociologist Natalia Sedykh cited reports about Bataeva in the context of Russian discussions of online recruitment, social media radicalization, and the participation of women in the orbit of the Islamic State.

Reported death

In December 2017, several Russian-language outlets reported that Bataeva had been killed in Mosul, Iraq. According to reporting by Ekho Kavkaza and Caucasian Knot, relatives said she had died there after having left Chechnya approximately two years earlier.

Subsequent reporting stated that Bataeva had allegedly wanted to return to Russia before her reported death. Caucasian Knot noted that Chechen law-enforcement authorities did not immediately remove her from wanted lists because reports of her death had not been confirmed.

References

This article "Aza Bataeva" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Aza Bataeva. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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