News

At the plenary session, 111 MPs voted unanimously for the amendments to the Constitution of Georgia, which allow Bidzina Ivanishvili, the leader of the opposition coalition "Georgian Dream", running for the upcoming parliamentary elections.

The Azerbaijani authorities disagree with the reports, disseminated by the media, on worsening of the situation around the "David Gareja" Monastery Complex, located on the border between Azerbaijan and Georgia. On Monday, May 21, at the press conference held in Baku, Ali Gasanov, Chief of the Public and Political Department of the Presidential Administration, declared absence of border disputes between the two countries.

At the European Championship in Sport and Combat Sambo, held on May 18-20 May in Moscow, athlete Sultan Aliev became one of the Russians athletes, who won the gold medals. Abdul Abdulzhalilov, another fighter from the republic, won the European Cup in Judo in the competitions held on May 19-20 in Orenburg.

On May, 21, a spontaneous gathering was held by residents of Kudepsta neighbourhood on the left bank of the Kudepsta river. About one hundred people took part in it. The citizens demanded to stop construction of Kudepsta thermal power plant (TPP) and organized watching in order not to let the developers into the building site of the plant.

A meeting of residents of Astrakhan on the bank of the Volga held on May, 20, with Oleg Shein’s participation was broken off by the police personnel.

On May, 21, a single-person picket with the demand of Mayor Anatoly Pakhomov’s resignation was held near the Administration of Sochi. 200 signatures of the townsmen were collected, Irina Brovkina who held the picket declared.

On May, 21, about 200 residents of the Crimea district of Krasnodar region took part in a meeting against the physicians’ negligence during which they collected signatures under the demand to punish those guilty of a twenty-four-years-old local resident’s death.

As of May, 21, 33 people injured during an explosion of balloons that took place on May, 4, in Yerevan are still undergoing treatment in different clinics of the capital. Eight persons were operated on in Yerevan by professor Adrian Daygler from Germany.

The Baku Court of Appeal chaired by Judge Mirzali Abbasov considered an appeal filed by blogger Bakhtiyar Gadjiev to challenge rejection of conditional early relief (CER) and a motion for CER filed by Babek Gasanov, the representative of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA). The Court left the activists in custody.

Today, lawyer of Rasul Mirzaev, World Champion in Mixed Martial Arts, filed a complaint against the decision of the Khamovniki District Court of Moscow to extend period of Rasul Mirzaev's detention till July 8, 2012. This was told to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by Alexei Grebenskoy, the very defender of Rasul Mirzaev.

Defenders of Apti and Aishat Magmadov asks the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) to recognize the verdict of the Moscow Regional Court and all subsequent decisions against the convicted persons as not complying with the requirements of the European Convention. This was reported by lawyer Musa Khadisov.

In the Tver Regional Court, at the trial of undermining of the "Neva-Express" train committed in 2009, the defendants declared their innocence in their final speeches.

Eight residents of Makhachkala, who protested against unlawful methods of investigation in regard to Abdurakhman Magomedov, detained during special operation and later beaten during interrogation, were sentenced to 3-5 days of imprisonment.

Relatives of Magomedkhan Magomedkhanov, whose body was found on May 20 in a burnt-out car in the Untsukul District of Dagestan, identified him and took him to be buried in his native village. This was reported by journalist Fatima Tarasova, the staff member of the Dagestani organization "Pravozaschita" (Advocacy). Relatives believe that power agents are involved in the death of Magomedkhan.

Attempt of the Civil Movement for Democracy "Public Chamber" (CMDPC) to hold today a protest action, demanding to ensure freedom of assembly and release of convicted oppositionists, resulted in clashes between opposition supporters and police, and detention of protesters.

Days of Ingushetia in the State Duma; approval of Prime Minister of South Ossetia; new phase of considering Oleg Shein's lawsuit in Astrakhan court; attack on a Muslim activist and the formation by new governor of government of the Stavropol Territory; murder of administration head and injuring of two civilians in shelling in Kabardino-Balkaria; start of "Eurovision" and hunger strike of political prisoners in Azerbaijan; special operation in Makhachkala, which caused protests, – look these and other events in the Caucasus in the review of the week of May 14-20, 2012, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Law enforcement bodies of Chechnya will carry out special operations against participants of paramilitary groups (PMG) in the area of administrative borders with the neighbouring republics and adjoining territories. According to members of power ministries, the majority of the Chechen underground are hiding themselves in the mountains and forestlands near the administrative borders with Dagestan and Ingushetia.

On May, 20, a discussion of the mass scuffle between the Dagestanies and the Armenians as a result of which a person perished was held in the hall of Adler music school of Sochi. About 400 persons took part in the meeting.

On May, 20, a citizens’ group “Protect David Garedji” organized a procession in Tbilisi. Several thousand citizens, generally young people, took part in the action marching from Vake park to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.

The official opening ceremony of the 57th international song contest "Eurovision-2012" took place in Baku at 9:00 p.m. local time on May 19. Delegations of all 42 countries participating in the contest were invited to the ceremony.