Blow for Putin as key warlord ally ‘has incurable pancreatic disease’

It’s been alleged that Ramzan Kadyrov has incurable pancreatic disease (Picture: Kadyrov95/e2w)

Vladimir Putin is no stranger to rumours about his own health – but now the health of one of his closest allies has been called into question.

Exiled newspaper Novaya Gazeta Europe claims that Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov, 47, is suffering from pancreatic disease and has ‘no hope of recovery’.

The news outlet says Kadyrov – a leading ally of the dictator’s war against Ukraine – has been living with ‘pancreatic necrosis’ for more than five years, which explains his frequent absences from the public stage.

An extraordinary new picture shows the Chechen warlord looking unusually bloated. 

Novaya Gazeta Europe adds: ‘Moscow must now decide operationally how to maintain stability when the tough Chechen dictator is no more.

‘Kadyrov’s size increased by one and a half times. 

Kadyrov is one of Putin’s closest allies (Picture: Mikhail METZEL/POOL/AFP)

His health has been a source of speculation for months (Picture: REUTERS)

“The shape of his abdomen acquired all the signs of pancreatogenic ascites.

‘He developed severe shortness of breath, spoke with difficulty, walked slowly, and dressed too warmly for the Chechen climate.’

While officials have denied Kadyrov suffers any significant health problems, the news outlet insists he is terminally ill in a potentially significant blow to Putin.

They say he was hospitalised at Moscow’s elite Central Clinical Hospital, also known as the Kremlin Clinic, for about a month with acute pulmonary failure after overdosing on sleeping pills that reportedly helped him relieve the pain.

Doctors stabilised his respiratory function but MRI findings indicated he would not be able to make a full recovery.

The newspaper was founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov, and cited sources close to Kadyrov as well as doctors in the Russian presidential administration’s hospital. 

Astonishingly, one of his closest allies, Adam Delimkhanov, was quoted saying: ‘The old leader will no longer be there, the illness will seriously affect him. 

‘Even if he recovers now, he’ll be neither alive nor dead.’

In September 2023, amid health rumours, Kadyrov posted a bizarre ‘I am alive’ video from inside the Kremlin’s leading hospital. 

He pretended he was visiting his sickly uncle, but it now appears he was the patient. 

Kadyrov – a father of at least 14, who is believed to have three wives – has lately been handing out honours to his children, some of whom occupy key government positions. 

In November, he appointed his then 15-year-old son Adam as the head of his security service comprising hundreds of armed operatives. 

But Putin is rumoured to have earmarked a military commander loyal to Kadyrov as his successor – Major-General Apti Alaudinov, 50.

Kadyrov is one of Vladimir Putin’s closest allies who has supplied tens of thousands of troops for his illegal war in Ukraine. 

He has amassed tens of thousands of troops, largely under the command of Alaudinov, who was last week given a new role in the Russian army. 

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