News

The participants of the today's action in Yerevan, dedicated to the anniversary of the "Million Mask March" have stated that any kind of dissent is suppressed in Armenia under Russia's pressure. Policemen did not interfere; and the action ended without incidents.

This call was announced by protesters at a rally in Volgograd, organized within the All-Russian campaign of zoo-defenders. The today's rally was organized by the organization to help stray pets named "Do good!" According to the organizers, it was attended by at least 200 people – mostly volunteers involved in helping stray animals.

After detaining Shamil Shamilov, the head of the GIBBD (traffic police) of the Kizilyurt District, for taking a bribe, investigators started checking complaints of his subordinates, forced, under threat of dismissal, to give him a part of their monthly salary.

The United Nations' Human Rights Committee (HRC) has addressed its appeal to the authorities of Azerbaijan to eliminate violations of the freedom of speech, the right of assembly and association, and religious freedom, as well as pointed to cases of discrimination of various population groups and political persecution of activists.

The Makhachkala authorities have promised to close all banquet halls and catering points, where inspections will reveal violations of sanitary and epidemiological requirements.

This morning, a shootout has taken place in the Suleiman-Stalsky District of Dagestan. According to the law enforcement bodies, an armed man opened fire on law enforcers and was killed.

Two general directors of companies, registered in Ingushetia, are accused of embezzling 14 million roubles, allocated by the local committee for youth affairs for holding events to engage students in entrepreneurial activities. The criminal case against them is brought to court. The law enforcement bodies suspect of negligence the officials of the committee for youth affairs, on whose connivance the theft occurred.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has appealed to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with a request to extradite to Russia Chechen field commanders Tarkhan Gaziev, Aslambek Vadalov, and Makhran Saidov, arrested in Turkey.

The Tbilisi Mayoralty has imposed a fine of 10,000 laris (about 4100 US dollars) on Tamaz Elizbarashvili for installing safety railings in the Vere Gorge, flooded by high water in 2015. The businessman has explained his initiative by the fact that the area represents a threat to people and the authorities have failed to take any safety measures. Officials from the Mayoralty state that Tamaz Elizbarashvili has installed the safety railings without permission.

US Vice President Joe Biden has reiterated the US support for Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity and condemned the ratification of the agreement on setting up a joint grouping of forces of Russia and Abkhazia, reports the White House.

Today, the Public Chamber of Russia in Moscow hosted a conference of members of the Public Oversight Commissions (POCs) of Russian regions. It was attended both by the current and former POC members. During the conference, rights defenders from Dagestan, including former member of the POC, sharply criticized the new composition of the Dagestani POC.

The picketers who held their action in the village of Krasnye Barrakady (Red Barricades), Astrakhan Region, told passers-by about the case of Igor Stenin, the leader of the nationalist movement "Russians of Astrakhan", convicted for incitement to extremism.

Samir Mamedli, an activist of the Youth Committee of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), has been sentenced to 30 days of administrative arrest.

Members of the Armenian community of Canada have posted bail for Saro Aivazyan, a defendant in the case of the capture of the building of the police patrol-and-post service (PPS) in Yerevan.

The international human rights organization Freedom House has called on Azerbaijani authorities to stop "the campaign of threats and insinuations" against the lawyers Elchin Sadygov and Fariz Namazly, who are defending political prisoners.

Krasnodar nationalists failed three times to coordinate the today's "Russian March" with the authorities; and, finally, only seven persons came to the action, and its route was essentially cut.

In Khasavyurt, a shootout occurred after law enforcers had tried to stop a car to check the driver's documents. The incident has occurred last night during the special operation in Khasavyurt.

Today, in the centre of Grozny, a rally dedicated to the Day of People's Unity was held in the square in front of the Mosque "Heart of Chechnya". Tens of thousands of people attended the rally. Some participants of the rally told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that they were forced to come to the celebration of the Day of People's Unity.

Temur Kobaliya, the head of the Human Rights Council of Volgograd, has reported about the visit of officials of the criminal investigation department to his apartment in the Krasnooktbyarsky District.

Vladimir Putin has signed a decree awarding Abdurashid Nurbagandov the Order of Courage. According to the leader of Dagestan, on July 10, the man was killed by militants after he came to the defence of his 10-year-old brother. Policeman Magomed Nurbagandov, an elder brother of Abdurashid Nurbagandov, was killed together with him after he had refused to call on his colleagues to quit their service at the police.