News

Russian investigators have failed to check statements of Khusein Badurgov's relatives that authorities has been involved in his disappearance in Grozny, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has concluded today, treating the investigation as inefficient. Badurgov's mother was awarded a compensation of 26,000 euros.

Workers of culture and art, like film director Alexander Sokurov, criticized in Chechnya for commenting on the Ramzan Kadyrov's title of Hero of Russia, should voice in public their attitude to controversial political and social issues, human rights defender Svetlana Gannushkina and actress Yuliya Aug believe.

Today, in Rostov-on-Don, the court has extended the term of Anastasia Shevchenko's house arrest until January 18. The activist claims that the pre-trial restriction measure negatively affects her children.

Murat Bekov, Ilez Barakhoev, Vakha and Ruslan Dzeitov, whose interests are represented by lawyers of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", filed complaints to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) about violations of the rights to personal integrity, fair trial, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly. This is reported by the HRC "Memorial" on its website on December 16.

At trial, Ismail and Mukhtar Kurbanov from the Kayakent District of Dagestan claimed that they refused defenders during the investigation because of pressure from law enforcers. In Dagestan, investigators resumed a verification of the Kurbanov brothers' complaints of torture.

Shalva Tadumadze, a former Georgian Prosecutor General, appointed a termless Judge of the Supreme Court (SC), has failed to confirm his higher legal education, the coalition "For Independent and Transparent Judiciary" asserts.

The haste and non-transparency of the blogger Elvin Isaev's deportation from Ukraine to Azerbaijan cast doubt on its legitimacy, the Baku rights defenders interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have noted.

In the Volgograd Region, a prosecutor has demanded long prison terms for several natives of Chechnya, who refuse to plead guilty, a relative of one of the defendants has stated in his video appeal to Ramzan Kadyrov.

Djambulat Umarov, the Chechen Minister for National Policy, External Relations, Press and Information, has recorded an expanded video appeal to the film director Alexander Sokurov, criticizing his statement about the Heroes of Russia and his films.

Murtazali Gasanguseinov, the father of the shepherd brothers killed in Dagestan, has taken part in a series of pickets in support of the arrested journalist Abdulmumin Gadjiev.

A court in the Stavropol Territory has sentenced Zelimkhan Tomov, a participant in the March rally in Magas, to 17 months in a settlement colony. The activist has confessed to throwing stones at "Rosgvardia" (Russian National Guard) fighters.

Border guards have detained a Georgian citizen, Gora Garibashvili, who crossed the demarcation line with South Ossetia, the authorities in the Georgian municipality of Kaspi have reported today.

Today, the court has imposed two fines of 100,000 roubles each on Yan Rachinsky. After an inspection, initiated by the Ingush FSB Department, the amount of fines imposed on the "International Memorial", the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", and the heads of those NGOs reached 2.9 million roubles.

The Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation made a decision to allocate 100,000 roubles to relatives of 22 journalists, who were killed during combat actions in Chechnya, announced the leader of the republic on the Remembrance Day of Journalists Killed in the Line of Duty. The Ramzan Kadyrov's statement was voiced amid the persecution of people who made public cases of human rights violations in Chechnya.

Mairbek Amaev, a resident of Grozny, disappeared in the city centre, and there has been no information about him for the third day, his relatives report. Instagram users assumed that the man had been detained by law enforcers.

25th anniversary of the outbreak of war in Chechnya; adoption by the US of a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide; fundraising for Azerbaijani human rights defender Ogtai Gyulyalyev, who still stays in a coma, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of December 9-15, 2019, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

The appellate instance has found the refusal of the court to release on bail Manvel Grigoryan, a former Armenian MP, accused of illegal possession of weapons and embezzlement as lawful.

During the week of December 9-15, 2019, no events related to the armed conflict in Northern Caucasus were recorded. No casualties or victims were reported. These are the results of the calculations run by the "Caucasian Knot" based on its own materials and information from other open sources.

Opponents of the development of the Amulsar field in the resort city of Jermuk have stated that they won't open the road thereto; and if law enforcers try to break through the blockade, they will quickly mobilize.

The courage of the film director, Alexander Sokurov, who sharply answered Ramzan Kadyrov about rethinking the title of Hero of Russia, was praised by social network users. Kadyrov will never receive Sokurov's apologies, they believe.