News

The consecration ceremony of the new church "Surb Vardanank", built for the funds of the charitable foundation "Development of Armenian Villages" took place in the city of Chartar, Martuni District of Nagorno-Karabakh. The Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan took part in the ceremony.

In Maykop, the capital of Adygea, at least 2000 believers attended an open-air collective namaz (prayer) on the occasion of Uraza-Bayram, said Eldar Cheuzh, one of the organizers of the event. Tourists could not only watch the festive prayer, but also take part in it.

The prize fund at equestrian races held in Cherkessk, the capital of Karachay-Cherkessia, dedicated to the Day of Russia, the 73rd anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War and the Uraza-Bayram holiday, amounted to 3 million roubles.

On June 10-16, Azerbaijani militaries fired 2500 shots at the positions of the Defence Army, the Nagorno-Karabakh Ministry of Defence (MoD) has reported.

Exercises involving tanks and artillery were held near the troops contact line. 2000 militaries successfully countered the attack of conventional enemy, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence (MoD) has stated.

In the opinion of Tevan Pogosyan, a political analyst, the start of the accumulation pension system in Armenia, under which citizens will contribute their own funds into their future pensions, will degrade authorities' rating. This duty violates the citizens' ownership rights, Anahit Beglaryan, a lawyer, believes.

The US State Department has warned American tourists about the terrorist threat that exists in the regions of Northern Caucasus and the cities hosting the FIFA World Cup.

Russian militaries have detained a woman with two young children near the village of Atotsi on the border with South Ossetia.

Today, in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, policemen detained protesters who demanded freedom for political prisoners. Soon, the detainees were released.

A resident of the Gazakh District of Azerbaijan was wounded in her leg, when she pastured cattle at the border, near positions of the Armenian Army.

During the conflict of residents of the Pankisi Gorge with passengers of the cars decorated with portraits of Akhmat Kadyrov, no one was hurt, the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has reported.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has registered complaints filed by LGBT activists from the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria and six other Russian cities about a refusal to hold LGBT actions. This was reported by Nikolai Alekseev, a rights defender and an LGBT activist.

Books and silverware from pre-revolutionary Russia confiscated by customs officers of North Ossetia who prevented an attempt to export the rarities from Russia were accepted by the National Museum of North Ossetia.

In Dagestan, hundreds of thousands of believers made festive prayers, reported the Muftiate. On the eve of the holiday, Makhachkala residents complained about the increase in food prices.

On the holiday of Eid al-Fitr celebrated today, residents of Chechnya arrange tables with food, voice best wishes to their relatives, and visit graves of deceased relatives. On the eve of the holiday, people from Chechnya complained about the uncertainty in the celebration date and the rise in prices for food.

In Azerbaijan, on the occasion of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr and the National Salvation Day, the authorities announced five days off from June 15 to June 19. On the eve of the Muslim holiday, believers described how they observed the fasting and discussed its meaning.

In Maikop, because of the large number of participants, the Muftiate decided to hold a namaz (prayer) in honour of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr in the square near the Cathedral Mosque.

Natives of Dagestan take high places at international contests of Koran reciters in the absence of any significant support from of Hafiz school by the authorities. The tradition of hifza (memorizing Koran by heart) is transmitted from generation to generation for centuries and presupposes the presence of a Koran reciter in every dwelling settlement, the Council of Russian Muftis has explained.

Ibragim Aliev, a resident of Nazran, whom his relatives declared kidnapped by law enforcers, was killed at an attempt to escape, law enforcers told Aliev's relatives. Ibragim Aliev's brother Bashir was detained.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev met after the opening of the FIFA World Cup in Moscow, although their meeting had not been planned. Armenians of Moscow supported Nikol Pashinyan, but expressed scepticism about the idea of returning to their homeland.