During the First Chechen War Raduyev became a field commander for the separatist Chechen forces.
On January 9, 1996, Raduyev, allegedly copying Shamil Basayev's 1995 Budyonnovsk attack, led a large-scale Kizlyar hostage taking raid into neighbouring Russian region of Dagestan, where his men took hostage at least 2,000 civilians.