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Murad Nurmagomedov, the author of the video clip, popular on the Internet, in which well-known Muslims criticize the New Year celebration in Dagestan, was detained by policemen in Makhachkala.

The second person killed in the special operation conducted in the Chechen village of Mekenskaya was identified as Bashir Omarov. According to the republic’s law enforcement bodies, Omarov and one of the leaders of local militants Musa Zavgaev, also killed today in Mekenskaya, were natives of the same village.

Musa Zavgaev, known among militants as Emir of the Nadterechny and Naur Districts of Chechnya, and his accomplice were killed in a special operation, the republic’s authorities have reported. Both of them had links with the grouping involved in the attack on Grozny on December 4, 2014, says the Russia’s National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC).

Azerbaijan has enforced a law about mandatory medical examination of those who plan to get married. According to the law, access to the results of the examination is allowed for a limited circle of people, but some commentators do not rule out potential violations.

The pistol and drugs found on December 18 in the car of Magomed Kurbanov, a native of the Akusha District of Dagestan, did not belong to him, while his detention may have to do with his Salafi beliefs, said his relative and public defender.

The unstable regions of Northern Caucasus, which have a high level of confrontation, may hope for more economic support, Natalia Zubarevich, an Associate Professor of the Higher School of Economics (HSE), said in her interview to the "Caucasian Knot".

In Dagestan, despite the ongoing public debate about Muslims celebrating New Year, Makhachkala is decorated in the same style as in previous years. The city is decorated with 17 New Year trees, and more than two million roubles were allocated for festivities.

For four years in a row, the "Caucasian Knot" has been marking the most meaningful, informative and topicalcomments made by its users. A year ago, we paid special attention to readers' comments about the freedom of religionand the problem of corruption in the Caucasus. This autumn we decided to award prizes to best commentators every week. Traditionally, the final choice and definition of the winner are with our readers.

Avaz Zeinalov, a journalist; Zaur Gurbanly and Uzeir Mamedli, activists of the movement "Nida"; and Gurban Mamedov, a lawyer, who were pardoned by the President of Azerbaijan and who were recognized as political prisoners by human rights defenders, declared their intention to continue their professional and social activities.

Magomed Aushev, who is undergoing medical treatment in a special ward of the Ingush Republican Clinical Hospital, lost his memory. This was told to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by Murad Aushev, a brother of Magomed Aushev.

In early December 2014, eight residents of the Chechen Republic disappeared or were kidnapped. This was reported by the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial".

In the Krasnodar Territory, the court has sentenced a native of Kaspiysk to 10.5 years of imprisonment for extortion of money from a Kuban resident to finance an illegal armed formation (IAF). His three accomplices were sentenced to 4.5-9 years of imprisonment.

Experts have expressed different opinions when assessing the actions against the Baku office of the Radio Liberty with regard to relations between Baku and Washington. According to political analyst Arastun Orudjlu, the Azerbaijani authorities deliberately take steps to deteriorate the relations with the United States.

Grozny has opened the school No. 20. On December 4, the school building was damaged during the special operation to neutralize the militants, who were hiding in it.

After the decision of the Russia's Supreme Court (SC) to recognize the "Islamic State" a terrorist organization, power agents have received more grounds for criminal prosecution of both participants of the Syrian war and those who take oath to "Islamic State" in Russia.

The restriction of citizens' rights in connection with putting them onto operative lists is illegal and may be appealed against in the court, said experts in their comments on the detention of rights defender Stanislav Dmitrievsky in the KBR.

Ramzan Makhauri, Ramzan Gagaev and Amerkhan Amatkhanov, who were killed on December 28 in Ingushetia, came to the republic from Chechnya aiming to commit a terror act, said Albert Barakhoev, the Acting Secretary of the Regional Security Council.

About 100 people have attended the commemoration rally held in memory of the victims of the terror act of December 30, 2013. The mourning ceremony was held near the memorial sign installed in Kachintsy Street, where a year ago a trolleybus explosion was triggered.

The Baku Court of Appeal (BCA) has dismissed the complaint lodged by the journalist Khadija Ismayilova against the refusal to place her under home arrest. Her defence treats Ismayilova's detention as illegal.

A court in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) has sentenced Jamal Uyanaev, a resident of the Chegem District, to 3 years and 9 months in prison on charges of aiding and funding militants.