News

One of the leaders of the "Islamic State" (IS), a native of Georgia, Abu Omar al-Shishani (Tarkhan Batirashvili) was not detained in the course of the operation conducted by the US Special Forces, said the spokesman for the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US Department of Defence (DoD).

The venues of New Year celebrations and mass citizens' accumulation are guarded by reinforced police squads.

Today, in Dagestan, the counterterrorist operation (CTO) regime, which was introduced on November 24, has been cancelled. Power agents reported the completion of all their activities within the regime.

The Moscow District Military Court has sentenced Elena Arshakhanova to 5 years and 3 months, and Sayida Khalikova to 5.5 years in colony on charges of sponsoring the terrorist organization "Islamic State" (IS), said the spokesman of the court.

The Grozny authorities have moved 556 people out of dilapidated houses into new apartment blocks. Some residents are dissatisfied with the pace of resettlement and the conditions of provision of new housing.

Vadim Prokhorov, the advocate of Boris Nemtsov's family, has rejected the investigators' conclusion that Ruslan Mukhudinov, an officer of the Chechen battalion "Sever" (North), was the customer of Boris' murder. According to Prokhorov, investigators are trying to divert the blow away from Kadyrov's closest retinue.

The work of collecting debts from consumers of utilities is carried out in the evening and at night, residents of Grozny assert. The night visits to debtors are a forced measure, said a source from the Mayoralty.

A criminal case against a local resident Magomed Makaev has been sent to the Urus-Martan District Court. According to investigators, he had supplied foodstuffs and clothes to a member of an illegal armed formation (IAF).

In Azerbaijan, civil society activists and experts are disappointed by the presidential decree of pardon, which does not affect the political prisoners. The activists believe that this fact can result in a deterioration of relations between Azerbaijan and the Western countries.

In Ingushetia, NGOs have appealed to Yunus-Bek Evkurov with a request to ensure the right of Magomed Mutsolgov to implementation of human rights activities. Besides, the Ingush NGOs have also called on the Ingush leader to condemn the campaign on defamation of Ingush public institutions.

Investigating authorities have suspected a 27-year-old resident of Ingushetia of taking part in the warfare in Syria for the "Islamic State" (IS), recognized as a terrorist organization. He has been put on the federal wanted list.

A field commander of the "Islamic State" (IS) (the IS has been recognized as a terrorist organization in Russia and some countries of the world, – note of the "Caucasian Knot"), a native of Georgia Tarkhan Batirashvili, also known as Abu Omar al-Shishani, has authority among the militants from the Caucasus, but he is not a key figure for the IS, believe the experts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot".

In the Gunib District of Dagestan, where a special operation is underway, a man, who opened fire on power agents, was shot dead. He was pre-identified as Shamil Nurmagomedov, the leader of the "Sogratl" militant grouping, said the Russian National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC).

The Mufti of Ingushetia Isa-Hadji Khamkhoev called the reason of his disagreement with the head of the republic Yunus-Bek Evkurov in the latter's support of the mosques that separated from rural communities. According to Khamkhoev, the position of the authorities could lead to new conflicts.

Resignation of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili; release of Krasnodar ecologist Evgeny Vitishko from colony; election of new City Manager of Vladikavkaz; removal of debris after apartment block explosion in Volgograd; special operations in three republics of Northern Caucasus; update of list of political prisoners in Azerbaijan, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of December 21-27, 2015, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Colonies and SIZOs (pre-trial prisons) see cases of physical violence against political prisoners and those who try to tell the media about what is happening – these are the conclusions of the report on the situation in prisons, prepared by rights defenders and former prisoners.

The investigation into the death of Timur Kuashev, a journalist from the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), is being conducted formally, said Magomed Mutsolgov, the leader of the organization named "Mashr". The version of his death from coronary heart disease is inconclusive, said Valery Khatazhukov, the chairman of the KBR's Human Rights Centre.

Before the appearance of the message about the capture of one of the leaders of the "Islamic State" (IS), a native of Georgia Abu Omar al-Shishani (Tarkhan Batirashvili), mass media had at least seven times reported about his death. The same was done by the head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov.

During the week from December 21 to December 27, 2015, the armed conflict in Northern Caucasus claimed nine human lives. These are the results of calculations run by the "Caucasian Knot" based on its own materials and information from other open sources.

A video has appeared in social networks, in which masked gunmen are addressing their threats to Khamzat Chumakov, Imam of the Nasyr-Kort mosque, for his anti-IS propaganda. However, Internet users doubt that the authors of the video belong to the militants of the "Islamic State" (IS), a terrorist organization banned in Russia.