News

After the dismissal of the leader and two presenters, the news programme "Courier" has stopped broadcasting on the Georgian "Rustavi-2" TV Company. It became clear to the authors that the channel fell under the control of the ruling party, said Mikheil Sesiashvili, one of those who have quitted.

Policemen have begun searching for the man who has shelled the electoral office of Oleg Arshba located in the Abkhaz village of Mgudzyrkhua today. The office staff has treated the incident as an attempt to intimidate the presidential candidate and his team.

Today, Ikram Ragimov, an Azerbaijani journalist, found guilty of extortion, stated his distrust in the court of appeal. He has refused to stop his hunger strike, held already for fourteen days, his relatives have informed.

Today, Zurab Gadjiev, the chairman of the Dagestani Historical and Geographical Society, has entered a correspondence discussion with Ramzan Kadyrov and voiced some facts when answering his questions about the activities of Imam Shamil.

People detained by border guards on August 20 were handed over to the Georgian authorities, the KGB of South Ossetia reported. The Georgian Prime Minister met the released people.

In Nagorno-Karabakh, 52 residential buildings were built and repaired for residents of the Talish village, evacuated during the April war of 2016, and social facilities were erected, officials report.

On August 20, the general director of the "Rustavi-2" TV Channel announced the dismissals of at least seven employees of the TV Channel. Dismissed reporters are supporters of the "United National Movement" (UNM) Party, and their dismissals point to a change in the editorial policy of the independent TV Company, note opposition politicians.

Sentenced Ukrainian citizens Pavel Grib, Nikolai Karpyuk, Stanislav Klykh, as well as Alexander Kolchenko and Vladimir Balukha were transferred from regional penitentiary institutions of the Federal Penitentiary Service (known as FSIN). At present, they are being kept at the Moscow SIZO (pre-trial prison), the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" suggests.

The detention of opponents of gold mining at the Amulsar deposit during a peaceful rally is unlawful; Nikol Pashinyan should respond to policemen's actions against activists, the human rights defenders interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

Nodar Meladze, the head of the "Rustavi-2" news service, was fired, Paata Saliya, Director General of the TV Company, announced live on air on August 20. He treated a conflict of interest as the reason for Meladze's resignation.

In Ingushetia, thirteen policemen fired after a rally in Magas for refusing to use force against activists, are charged with disobeying an order. The law enforcers tried to achieve reinstatement, but the court refused them.

The new militaries' positions on Azerbaijani-Armenian border have strengthened the protection of the Azerbaijani village of Ikindji Shikhli and the Armenian dwelling settlement of Chinari, which came under fire, Baku and Yerevan experts believe.

On August 20, the Khasavyurt District Court arrested Kemran Isaev, a resident of Dagestan, who was declared kidnapped by his relatives, within a case of firearm possession.

400 pilgrims from the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) have committed their Hajj, having completely covered this year's quota allocated for the republic. The KBR pilgrims, who have returned from Mecca, noted a good organization of the tour.

Magomed Gadjiev, a member of the Public Chamber and the Public Oversight Commission (POC) of Dagestan, told the court that law enforcers had forced him to slander the head of the republic's branch of the Federal Service of Court Marshals.

Kemran Isaev, a resident of Dagestan, suspected of possessing weapons and ammunition, said in the video posted today that he had planned to confess and surrender his pistol to the police.

Kibar Khalvashi, an owner of the "Rustavi-2" TV Company, did not find anyone who wanted to buy the TV Channel and announced the decision to head the company to get it out of the financial crisis.

The first pilgrims from Chechnya who visited Saudi Arabia this year returned to their homeland. They have no claims to organizers of the Hajj.

The positions of the Azerbaijani troops in the Karabakh conflict zone were shelled 22 times within 24 hours, and villages in the area bordering Armenia came under fire, reports today the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for Azerbaijan.

In Svaneti, residents of the Ushguli community stopped their protest action after the authorities promised to restore local towers.