249th Separate Special Motorized Battalion South

The 249th Separate Special Motorized Battalion "South" is a military formation within the 46th Separate Operational Purpose Brigade of the Russian National Guard, stationed in the Vedensky District of the Chechen Republic.^[1] It is considered one of the elite units in the Russian Federation. It was formed on May 29, 2006, during the Second Chechen War, and since then has taken an active part in conducting more than 6,960 different counter-terrorist operations in the North Caucasus Federal District.^[1]

249th Separate Special Motorized Battalion South
Active	2006-present
Country	Chechnya • Russia
Allegiance	Ramzan Kadyrov
Type	Gendarmerie
Role	Motorized infantry
Size	300
Part of	Kadyrovites
Colors	Chechnya Russia
Commanders
Current commander	Saydi Lorsankev

On April 27, 2007, in the Shatoi region, a Mi-8 helicopter crashed, carrying three crew members and fifteen battalion fighters. All on board were killed. There are three versions of the crash: technical malfunction, pilot error, and militant shelling.

Combat use

Since early February 2022, it has been taking part in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.^[2]

Commanders

• Muslim Ilyasov
• Anzor Magomadov
• Khusein Mezhidov (2019–2022)^[3]
• Saidi Lorsankaev (2022–present)^[4][5]