News

A bill, submitted today to the State Duma of Russia, envisages 5-10 years in prison for female circumcision, committed on religious grounds.

The court has pronounced the pre-trial restriction measure in the form of arrest against two other persons accused of abuse of power and obstruction of journalists' activities during a protest action in Yerevan. This has been reported today by the Special Investigating Service of Armenia.

On August 18, natives of Northern and Southern Caucasus won four medals at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Of the above four medals, three were won by athletes of the national team of Azerbaijan, and one by an athlete of the national team of Russia.

The practice of mutilating procedures on girls' genitals in Dagestan is a criminal offense. This opinion was voiced by advocates interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot". According to them, a procedure of female circumcision can be qualified as a bodily injury.

The concern over the arrests of Natiq Jafarli, a co-founder of the Azerbaijani "ReAl" Party, and other activists has been expressed by Federica Mogherini, the current High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Alan Duncan, Minister of State at the Foreign Office, responsible for Europe and the Americas.

More than a dozen complaints of relatives of the men accused in the attack on Nalchik in 2005, who demand to disclose the places of burial of the killed men, were filed to the Supreme Court (SC) of Russia, the "Kommersant" reports today.

A retired couple has been charged with illegal felling of trees. The pensioners themselves fought for the preservation of trees in Sochi. According to them, they were revenged for their fight.

Members of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA) have reported the detention of its two activists Fuad Akhmedli and Gadim Bekirov. Till present, the reasons for their detention have not been reported.

The DPS (road-and-patrol service) in the Moscow Region was attacked by militants of the "Islamic State" (IS), states the terrorist organization banned by the court in Russia.

The petition to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in support of the wrestler Migran Arutyunyan has gathered 15,711 signatures. The authors of the petition believe that referees had deprived Arutyunyan of the Olympic gold medal.

The recent murder of Zalim Shebzukhov and his alleged supporters in Saint Petersburg indicates that the Caucasian militants are gradually spreading over Russian regions, said the experts, interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot".

Turgut Gambar, a board member of the youth movement “Nida”, was released after a four-hour stay at the police station with a warning.

The Solntsevo District Court of Moscow has imposed a fine of 400,000 roubles on Patimat Gadjieva, a native of Dagestan and a student of the medical university, accused of reposting an image of the flag of the so-called "Islamic State” (IS), banned in Russia by the court judgement.

On August 17, natives of Northern and Southern Caucasus won two medals at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. The both medals were won by athletes of the national team of Azerbaijan.

In Baku, Turgut Gambar and Ismi Shakhzade, members of the board of the youth movement "Nida", have been detained today. The place of their detention has not been reported yet.

Irina Dochiya, the secretary of the political council of the "United Abkhazia" Party, who was kidnapped on July 2, returned home. This has been reported today by an official from the State Security Service of Abkhazia.

Shagen Arutyunyan, a 17-year-old son of Shant Arutyunyan, the sentenced leader of the "Tsegakron" Party, has been summoned to visit today, on August 18, the division of alternative punishment execution of the penitentiary department of the Armenian Ministry of Justice (MoJ).

Two men involved in the attack on a checkpoint of the road-and-patrol service (known as DPS) in the Moscow Region were killed, and two policemen were seriously injured. This was reported by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA). According to the law enforcement bodies, the killed men were natives of the Caucasus. They have been already identified.

The Russian Ministry of Public Health (MPH) has criticized the ritual of female circumcision widespread in Dagestan, and the General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) has promised to check the legality of the practice of female circumcision in Northern Caucasus.

Shagen, a 17-year-old son of the convicted leader of the "Tsegakron" Party Shant Arutyunyan, has announced his hunger strike in Freedom Square in Yerevan. The activist demands to release political prisoners.