News

Voluntary early resignation of Ingush leader Yunus-Bek Evkurov; mass protests in Georgia; exchange of war prisoners between Armenia and Azerbaijan; re-arrest of the second president of Armenia; appointment of a new senator from Karachay-Cherkessia, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of June 24-30, 2019, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Georgian singer Nino Katamadze supported protesters in Tbilisi by announcing that she would never again give concerts in Russia. The decision was made in response to criticism of social network users after the singer's performance in Moscow.

Abkhazia banned to transport a woman from the village of Otobaya via the Enguri Bridge to Georgia for medical treatment, and the problem was solved after the intervention of EU observers, reported the office of the Georgian State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality.

Administrative cases have been initiated against the parents of the participants in the mass brawl that broke out near a Grozny school. The school managers failed to preserve the order during the exam, the Chechen Prosecutor' Office (PO) has stated.

On June 29, Olga Karpukhnova, a resident of Volgograd, held a solo picket, while pointing to a large number of poor people among Russians and urging President Putin to voluntarily leave his post.

On June 23-29, Azerbaijani soldiers fired 600 shots at the positions of the Defence Army of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), the NKR's Ministry of Defence (MoD) has stated. In its turn, Azerbaijan stated that within the week, the ceasefire regime was violated with rare single shots.

The Kaspiysk City Court has found a militant's widow guilty of working for terrorists in Syria. Her imprisonment is postponed by twelve years, until the youngest of her five children matures.

The fall in the lari exchange rate is caused by expectation of major financial losses from the decrease in tourist flow from Russia, the National Bank of Georgia has stated.

Karen Grigoryan, a son of General Manvel Grigoryan, a former MP of the National Assembly (Parliament) of Armenia, who had earlier headed the Echmiadzin community, has been charged with embezzling community funds.

Giorgi Tsurtsumiya, President of the Federal Georgian National-Cultural Autonomy in Russia, has appealed to the head of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, with a request to restore air flights between Georgia and Russia.

Giorgi Gakhariya, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), said he would leave his post if investigators find numerous systemic violations committed by law enforcers during the dispersal of protesters in Tbilisi.

The mother of Islam Barzukaev, a suspect of keeping weapons, has continued her protest action in Derbent, demanding an independent examination of her son for torture. The mother of Gasan Kurbanov, who was detained within the same case, decided to join the hunger strike on June 29.

The Azerbaijani authorities have preferred to ignore the news about the opening of the grave of Hadji Murad and transportation of his remains to Dagestan, despite an obvious violation of the law; and there was no broad public discussion, the experts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have noted.

Law enforcers stopped believers near the "Tangim" Mosque and took them away, reports one of the visitors of the mosque. At least ten people were taken to a police station, stated journalist Idris Yusupov.

Ali Kerimli, the leader of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), was released from the police station 1.5 hours after his detention. He was warned about the inadmissibility of holding illegal processions.

Idris Yusupov, a correspondent of the Dagestani newspaper "Novoye Delo" (New Cause), reported about his detention during a raid conducted by law enforcers in the area of the "Tangim" Mosque in Makhachkala. The reporter regarded his detention as obstructing the activities of a journalist.

With the mediation of the Red Cross, Zaven Karapetyan, treated by Azerbaijan as a spy, and Elvin Ibragimov, detained by Armenian soldiers at the border, returned to their homeland.

Ali Kerimli, the leader of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), was taken to a police station after participating in the "Marathon of Solidarity", reports Gezyal Bairamly, the deputy chair of the PFPA.

In the context of mass protests in Georgia, citizens of Abkhazia are temporarily prohibited to enter Georgia, the Abkhaz State Security Service (SSS) announced on June 27.

The acting head of Ingushetia, Makhmud-Ali Kalimatov, needs to eliminate tension in the society and restore trust in the authorities; his main task is to cancel the border agreement with Chechnya, the Ingush protest activists interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have stated.