that the only effective remedy, the criminal investigation, had proved to be ineffective.
B. The Court's assessment
102. The Court will examine the arguments of the parties in the light of the provisions of the Convention and its relevant practice (for a relevant summary, see Estamirov and Others v. Russia, No. 60272/00, §§ 73 - 74, 12 October 2006).
103. The Court notes that the Russian legal system provides, in principle, two avenues of recourse for the victims of illegal and criminal acts attributable to the State or its agents, namely civil and criminal remedies.
104. As regards a civil action to obtain redress for damage sustained through the alleged illegal acts or unlawful conduct of State agents, the Court has already found in a number of similar cases that this procedure alone cannot be regarded as an effective remedy in the context of claims brought under Article 2 of the Convention (see Khashiyev and Akayeva v. Russia, Nos. 57942/00 and 57945/00, §§ 119 - 121, 24 February 2005, and Estamirov and Others, cited above, § 77). In the light of the above, the Court confirms that the applicants were not obliged to pursue civil remedies.
105. As regards criminal-law remedies provided for by the Russian legal system, the Court observes that the applicants complained to the law-enforcement authorities immediately after the kidnapping of Artur Akhmatkhanov and that an investigation has been pending since 4 April 2003. The applicants and the Government dispute the effectiveness of the investigation of the kidnapping.
106. The Court considers that the Government's objection raises issues concerning the effectiveness of the investigation which are closely linked to the merits of the applicants' complaints. Thus, it decides to join this objection to the merits of the case and considers that the issue falls to be examined below.
II. The Court's assessment of the evidence
and the establishment of the facts
A. The parties' arguments
107. The applicants maintained that it was beyond reasonable doubt that the men who had taken Artur Akhmatkhanov away were State agents. In support of their complaint they referred to the following facts. At the material time Shali had been under the total control of federal troops. The armed men who had abducted Artur Akhmatkhanov had arrived in military APCs, cordoned off the area and acted in a manner similar to that of special forces carrying out a special operation. They were wearing a particular camouflage uniform, were armed and opened fire without fear of the law-enforcement agencies located in the town. Local residents had seen Artur Akhmatkhanov being taken into one of the abductors' APCs. All the information disclosed from the criminal investigation file supported their assertion as to the involvement of State agents in the abduction. Since their relative had been missing for a very lengthy period, he could be presumed dead. That presumption was further supported by the circumstances in which he had been arrested, which should be recognised as life-threatening. Finally, the Government had failed to provide any plausible explanation for the events.
108. The Government submitted that unidentified armed men had kidnapped Artur Akhmatkhanov. They further contended that the investigation of the incident was pending, that there was no evidence that the men were State agents and that there were therefore no grounds for holding the State liable for the alleged violations of the applicants' rights. They further argued that there was no convincing evidence that the applicants' relative was dead. The Government raised a number of objections to the applicants' presentation of the facts. The fact that the perpetrators of the abduction were wearing camouflage uniforms did not mean that these men could
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