News

Story about detention of lezginka dancers in Gelendzhik; fires in Southern Russia and Armenia; political hunger strike declared by activists of "Communists of Russia" Party in North Ossetia; mass repentance action in Chechnya; departure of first pilgrim groups from the North-Caucasian regions for Hajj; emergency situation caused by mudflow in the Kabardino-Balkarian city of Tyrnyauz, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of August 14-20, 2017, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

According to Nikolai Scherbakov, an organizer of a picket, the authorities have sanctioned an action only from the ninth time. Picketers reported the environmental problems in the city, inaction of officials, and corruption. This was reported by the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Salim Akhobekov, who served five days of arrest for dancing lezginka in Gelendzhik, was hospitalized in Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria.

As a result of a road accident in Chechnya, two athletes were killed and three others were injured. The tournament of the Student League of MMA in the Chechen Republic was cancelled.

An advocate of Azerbaijani journalist Elchin Ismayilly has complained about being not allowed to visit his client at the SIZO (pre-trial prison). He has also claimed the unjustified requirements from the judge to change the date of a warrant for the journalist's defence.

The mother of Aslan Cherkesov has addressed Yuri Kokov, the head of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) with a complaint about the actions of the staff of a Krasnoyarsk colony. She asked him to help in transferring her son to some colony in the Caucasus.

The defence had appealed against the court's decision to extend the arrest of Gezyal Bairamly, the deputy chair of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), and journalist Afghan Mukhtarly. According to advocates, keeping their clients in custody is unreasonable.

The family of the 19-year-old Arthur Gadjiev, who has been shot dead today by policemen after he attacked with a knife passersby in Surgut and stabbed seven people, had come from Dagestan, the edition named “Life” reports. His father has been registered as an extremist; and the responsibility for the incident was taken by the "Islamic State" (IS), a terrorist organization banned in Russia by the court, the media add.

A criminal case has been instituted for use of violence against a policeman against Salim Akhobekov, who was detained for dancing lezginka in Gelendzhik and who served five days of administrative arrest. This was reported by an advocate of the young man.

In North Ossetia, the rally organized by the "Communists of Russia" Party in protest against its withdrawal from the elections was attended by members of five other political parties.

This evening, the first group of Chechen pilgrims leaves Grozny for Saudi Arabia.

Two internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the Jebrail District of Azerbaijan, arrested after a protest action against the electricity cut-off in villages and towns for IDPs, are sentenced to 1.5 years of imprisonment. Three other defendants are sentenced to conditional sentences and released in the courtroom.

On August 18, the Dagestani Centre for Russian Language and Culture under the Republican Ministry for National Police organized an action in support of the construction of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Ak-Gol Park after a group of Makhachkala residents had challenged the construction in court.

A ceiling has collapsed in one of the new cottages built in Sochi for resettlement of city residents from the construction of Olympic facilities.

The Armavir City Court has sentenced Yuri Vishnyakov to 20 hours of compulsory labour for taking part in an action held by supporters of opposition politician Alexei Navalny on June 12.

In Grozny, the Chechen law enforcement agencies have organized mass repentance of local residents who signed an appeal to the Russian General Prosecutor, the newspaper "Novaya Gazeta" reports.

One of colony bosses threatened to kill Ilkin Rustamzade, an activist of the “Nida” movement, for criticizing Azerbaijani authorities, Ilkin’s mother has reported after visiting her son. The penitentiary service has treated the inmate’s words as "absurd".

The court has found Nikolai Sokol, Kirill Yaroslavtsev, and Olga Botrakova guilty of violating the rules for holding a rally of real estate investors in Gelendzhik and sentenced each of the defendants to a fine of 15,000 roubles. The participants of the action announced their intention to challenge the court's decision.

The singer Zelimkhan Bakaev, whose kidnapping was declared by his friends, was not a terrorist and power agents had no need of him at all, Djambulat Umarov, the Chechen Minister for National Policy, Press and Information, has stated today.

The verdict to blogger Alexander Lapshin has come into force. According to his advocates, there are no obstacles to Lapshin's extradition from Azerbaijan to Israel.