Kammala jumlar da ke gaba: A shekara ta 2001, bayan barkewar Yaƙin Chechen na biyu, Khangoshvili ya shiga cikin 'yan adawa na Chechen Republic of Ichkeria a yakin da suke yi da Rasha. Khangoshvili ya kasance kwamandan filin kuma yana da kusanci da tsohon shugaban Chechen Aslan Maskhadov. An kashe Maskhadov a watan Maris na shekarar 2005 a wani samame da FSB, hukumar leken asirin cikin gida ta Rasha ta kai. A cewar ɗan'uwan Khangoshvili, Zurab, Zelimkhan ya shiga cikin
Yuni 2004 harin da aka kai kan jami'an tsaro, sojoji da 'yan sanda a Jamhuriyar Ingushetia da Dagestan ta Rasha, wanda aka kashe jami'an' yan sanda 88 da fararen hula; An bayar da rahoton cewa Zelimkhan ya ji rauni a kafa yayin aikin. Shugaban Rasha Vladimir Putin ya yi ikirarin cewa yana daya daga cikin wadanda suka kai harin bam a jirgin karkashin kasa na Moscow. Koyaya, Zelimkhan da kansa ya musanta cewa ya taɓa ɗaukar alhakin laifukan yaƙi, yana gaya wa kafofin watsa labarai na Georgia, "Rashawa suna zarge ni da abubuwa da yawa, gami da hare-haren ta'addanci. Wannan ƙarya ce. Babu wanda zai iya bayar da wata hujja cewa wani farar hula ya ji rauni ko ya mutu a kowane mataki na!".