News

Today, Madina Djamalutdinova, a native of Kyrgyzstan, was detained in Dagestan, said Aisha Selimkhanova, an activist of the Dagestani Regional Public Organization (DRPO) "Pravozaschita" (Advocacy), adding that the whereabouts of Djamalutdinova is unknown.

Activists of the LGBT Alliance named "Nefes" (Breath) have collected more than 200 signatures to the petition addressed to the President of Azerbaijan asking to set up a telephone "hotline" for psychological help to members of sexual minorities.

About 15 Circassian nationals living abroad have arrived in Sochi to participate in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. "In total, 26 Circassians from abroad will take part in the ceremony," said Anatoly Kodzokov, the head of the Department for External Relations of the Kabardino-Balkarian State University (KBSU).

In the course of a special operation, conducted in the Dagestani city of Izberbash, Mirzaev, the leader of the "Kadar" militants' grouping, was killed. According to preliminary data, he could send the suicide bombers for committing terror acts in Volgograd, said a source from the law enforcement bodies of the republic.

On February 4, Pavel Nagibin, an activist of "The Other Russia" Party from Rostov-on-Don, appealed to the court against the denial of "Sochi-2014" Organizing Committee (OC) to grant him a fan's passport that is required, along with tickets, to attend the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.

Contrary to the authorities of Sochi, the highway aimed to substitute the Kurortny Avenue has not been officially put into operation, said a source from the Road-Building Directorate (RBD) "Chernomorye" (Black Sea Area), a branch of the "Rosavtodor" (Russian Federal Road Agency).

On February 4, at the trial held in Sochi on the case of Mardiros Demerchyan, a builder of Olympic facilities, accused of slandering the police in his allegations of torture, the doctor Olga Krymova, a prosecution witness, was given the floor. She said that she did not sign the interrogation protocol, which had been submitted to the court, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

Russian authorities have taken unprecedented measures to ensure security during the Olympic Games in Sochi; however, the terror threat has become real not only in the area of the Games, but elsewhere in Russia, says the report "Too Far, Too Fast: Sochi, Tourism and the Conflict in the Caucasus", prepared by the International Crisis Group (ICG).

Parents of large families and of children with disabilities have gone on an endless hunger strike. They demand to solve their housing problems and increase the amount of benefits and social help to large families and families with disabled children.

Today, the Rostov Regional Court has upheld the ruling of the Sovietskiy District Court of Rostov-on-Don to arrest Vladislav Ryazantsev, the coordinator of the movement "Left-Wing Front", for hooliganism for 15 days. Ryazantsev announced his intention to challenge the court ruling.

Igor Kharchenko, an activist of the public organization "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus" (EcoWatch) and a member of the "Yabloko" Party, who was detained today in Krasnodar, has been accused of disobeying a legitimate order of a policeman, said the Department of Internal Affairs.

The Austrian National Olympic Committee (NOC) has received a letter containing threats to abduct two Austrian female athletes, who go to compete at the Olympic Games in Sochi, Peter Mennel, the Secretary General of the NOC, has reported today.

Out of two hundred refugee families, who were sent in 2011 to live in the Georgian settlement of Potskho-Etseri, only five families continue living there. The rest of the families have moved to other parts of Georgia or returned to Abkhazia, the remaining refugees have reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law reinforcing criminal responsibility for extremist activities, according to the today's statement of the state system of legal information.

35,000 Dutchmen have signed a petition demanding from the top officials of the Netherlands not to attend the Olympic Games in Sochi, because of the Russian law, which infringes, in their opinion, the rights of sexual minorities.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has urged the Organizing Committee (OC) of the Olympic Games in Sochi to take urgent measures to address the problem of unavailability of accommodations for the journalists, who came to work in the Mountain Cluster of the Games.

The initiative to involve Krasnodar educators in the Olympic Torch Relay is a recommendation, but a refusal to go may have consequences for a teacher, said the lawyer Igor Trunov.

Parents of many children and parents of children with disabilities are going to start their protest hunger strike on February 4, as they stated at a press conference on February 3. Their demands include increase of monthly child allowances and provide free public transportation.

In Krasnodar, on February 3, on the eve of the welcoming ceremony of the Olympic Flame, six activists of the "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus" (EcoWatch) were detained.

A section of the Olympic Torch Relay was held today in the city of Maikop, the capital of Adygea. The festive event was held at elevated security measures; however, there were plenty of people in the streets, residents report.