News

On March 13, people from the office of the Ombudsman of Azerbaijan visited five detainees in the context of events in Guba on March 1, currently kept at the Baku SIZO (pre-trial prison), situated in the village of Kyurdakhany.

With the restart of blasting works aimed to dispose obsolete ammunition at the military training ground "Ashuluk", seismic quakes are again registered in the Astrakhan Region.

The victims of the explosion of a gas cylinder at the wedding party in Vladikavkaz on June 25, 2011, ask not to punish the defendant Vadim Vazagov.

Beatings, seizure of equipment and forced detentions were reported today by Suren Gazaryan, a member of the "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus", and his advocate Victor Dutlov; the incident happened in the Krasnodar Territory, in the forest near the summer cottage of Governor Alexander Tkachov.

In Armenia, a few major businessmen, including incumbent MPs, have announced their decision to participate in the elections to the National Assembly, scheduled for May 6, 2012.

All the six persons killed during the special operation conducted in the settlement of Mir in the Chegem District of Kabardino-Balkaria have been identified as Arslan Gegraev, Rustam Zhuboev, Zalimkhan Khakonov, Azret Suyunbaev, Abdul Zhanikaev and Diana Gulieva, the Investigatory Department for Kabardino-Balkaria of the Investigatory Committee of the Russian Federation (IC RF) has reported.

Rustam Aushev, a resident of Ingushetia, was kidnapped in the city of Minvody by FSB agents from Ingushetia and now may be kept in Magas, said Magomed Gandaur-Egi, Mr Aushev's lawyer. He asked rights defenders to find out the exact whereabouts of the defendant. The FSB Department for Ingushetia said that they knew nothing about Aushev's whereabouts.

The Supreme Court of North Ossetia has announced the verdict to Suliman Khashagulgov, the defendant in the case of the terror act committed in the central marketplace of Vladikavkaz on September 9, 2010. He was sentenced to 16 years of imprisonment in a high security colony.

The Stavropol Regional Court found Cherkes Rustamov, a 22-year-old native of Dagestan, guilty of committing a terror act in May 2010 near the Palace of Culture and Sports in the centre of the city of Stavropol. The Court's decision sentenced Cherkes Rustamov to life imprisonment.

The Saratov Garrison Military Court found the soldier Andrei Popov, who earlier claimed that he had been kept in slavery in Dagestan, guilty of desertion and sentenced him to 2 years of imprisonment in a settlement-colony.

The North-Caucasian District Military Court pronounced the verdict in the criminal case against Oleg Gagiev, who was accused of organizing and leading the grouping, which had committed several resonant crimes in the territory of North Ossetia.

Within the framework of the programme carried out by the Eurasia Partnership Foundation (EPF) and under support of the UK government young writers from Armenia and Azerbaijan implement a project "Writers against Conflicts". Five Armenian and five Azerbaijani writers participate in the project. This was reported by Izabella Sargsyan, the manager of the programme of the Eurasia Partnership Foundation.

The Adygea Regional Office of Trade Unions of Russia "Sotsprof" has launched to implement in the territory of the republic the social programme "Grandma-online" "Grandpa-online", which is aimed to teach elderly and disabled persons computer literacy free of charge.

Today in front of the building, housing the Volgograd Regional Public Health Committee, a picket was held by relatives of those who fell victim to doctors' mistakes.

The car of the missing Akav Khalidov, 28, was found in a special car park of the city of Khasavyurt. His relatives have informed a member of the Dagestani Regional Public Organization (DRPO) "Pravozaschita" (Advocacy) about it.

The Armenian Ombudsman Karen Andreasyan has sent a request to the country's Central Election Commission (CEC) asking to clarify the new procedure for accreditation of journalists. Armenian media have already expressed dissatisfaction with the new accreditation procedure established by the CEC.

Law enforcers have illegally detained and then beat Inal Berov, 29, a resident of Nalchik, asserts his father Muradin Berov. Now, Inal is at large; and his father wants to appeal on the fact to the President of Russia and the head of Kabardino-Balkaria.

The first round of parliamentary elections in Abkhazia resulted in the victory of one nominee from the pro-government party "United Abkhazia" and the oppositional "People's Unity Forum of Abkhazia" each, while six oppositional candidates and three from the pro-government party have proceeded into the second round. All the Communist Party's nominees have failed.

Today, after a short break, the trial on an armed attack on Nalchik in October 2005, which is taking place at the Supreme Court of Kabardino-Balkaria, was resumed.