I forgot to mention that the extremists have close connections to the Chechen mafia, which is the largest in Russia, which in turn is linked to the larger Russian mafia and corrupt elements in the Russian Army (who sell them weapons) and, at least in the past, Boris Berezovsky.
Chechnya's infrastructure and form of social organization has devolved to the point where it's virtually at Sierra Leone levels. It was never very developed, but it's gone into free fall since 1991. I'm not refering to northern Chechnya, which is relatively stable, but to the mountainous southern regions that are dominated by the warclans and Wahabites.
"Chechen independence" is ridiculous. Caucasians and Muslims are not an oppressed minority in the Russian Federation. There's a lot of anti-Caucasian feeling at present, but that's mostly because of Chechnya. Dagestanis and the Ingush (who are ethnically mostly Chechen) regard the Chechen rebels as brutal thugs who sell drugs at Muslim schools, blow up buildings where Muslims sleep, set off bombs at parades held by Muslims, and then have the gall to call themselves the true Muslims.
Chris Doss The Russia Journal