vicemen in Chechnya rendered any potentially effective remedies inadequate and illusory in her case.
B. The Court's assessment
57. 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).
58. 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.
59. As regards a civil action to obtain redress for damage sustained through 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 applicant was not obliged to pursue civil remedies. The Government's objection in this regard is thus dismissed.
60. As regards criminal law remedies, the Court observes that the applicant complained to the law-enforcement authorities after the abduction of Aslan Sadulayev and that an investigation has been pending since 31 January 2003. The applicant and the Government dispute the effectiveness of the investigation of the kidnapping.
61. 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 applicant's 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
62. The applicant maintained that it was beyond reasonable doubt that the men who had taken away Aslan Sadulayev were State agents. In support of her complaint she referred to the following facts. The armed men who had abducted Aslan Sadulayev had acted at the checkpoint of the Russian military forces; they drove around in military APCs, they were armed and wearing military uniform. All the information disclosed from the criminal investigation file supported the applicant's assertion as to the involvement of State agents in the abduction. She further pointed out that the Government had failed to provide any plausible explanation to the events in question. Since Aslan Sadulayev 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.
63. The Government submitted that unidentified armed men, possibly members of illegal armed groups or criminals pursuing a blood feud, had kidnapped Aslan Sadulayev. 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 applicant's rights. They further argued that there was no convincing evidence that the applicant's son was dead. The Government further stated that the fact that the perpetrators of the abduction were wearing camouflage uniforms did not mean that these men could not have been members of illegal armed groups. They also contended that the applicant's description of the circumstances surrounding the abduction was inconsistent. In particular, the applicant had failed to inform the investigators about the three women who
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