mine 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).
78. The Court notes that the Russian legal system provides, in principle, two avenues of recourse for victims of illegal and criminal acts attributable to the State or its agents, namely civil and criminal remedies.
79. 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 applicants were not obliged to pursue civil remedies. The Government's objection in this regard is thus dismissed.
80. As regards criminal law remedies, the Court observes that the applicants complained to the law enforcement authorities after the kidnapping of Magomed-Ali Abayev and Anvar Shaipov and that an investigation has been pending since 6 February 2003. The applicants and the Government dispute the effectiveness of the investigation of the kidnapping.
81. 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
82. The applicants maintained that it was beyond reasonable doubt that on 13 September 2000 their relatives Magomed-Ali Abayev and Anvar Shaipov had been arrested by State agents at the checkpoint of Russian military forces and that they had been missing ever since. In support of their complaint they referred to a number of witness statements confirming that their relatives had been stopped for an identity check at the checkpoint located at the former clothing factory, that after that they had been taken inside the factory building and had not come out. The applicants stated that all the information disclosed from the criminal investigation file supported their assertion as to the involvement of State agents in the abduction. In connection with this they referred to the decision of the Chechnya Supreme Court (see paragraph 70 above), which confirmed in its text that Magomed Ali Abayev and Anvar Shaipov had been arrested at the checkpoint. They further contended that since their relatives had been missing for a very lengthy period they could be presumed dead. That presumption was further supported by the circumstances in which they had been arrested, which should be recognised as life-threatening.
83. The Government submitted that unidentified armed men, possibly criminals or members of illegal armed groups, had kidnapped Magomed-Ali Abayev and Anvar Shaipov. 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' relatives were dead and pointed out that the applicants had complained to the authorities about the abduction only in 2002, that is two years after the incident. The Government further alleged that the applicants' description of the circumstances surrounding the abduction was incon
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