News

The Saratov Garrison Court has found regular soldiers enlisted from North Ossetia, Dagestan and Kabardino-Balkaria guilty of abusing their fellow-servicemen and sentenced each of them to three years in prison; however, they refused to plead guilty and have already appealed against the verdict.

As a result of 12 self-explosions committed by suicide bombers in 2011 in the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD) and in Moscow, the last three of which were triggered in Grozny on August 30, 63 persons were killed and more than 224 wounded. These are the figures of the "Caucasian Knot", based on the data of own correspondents of the edition and information from open sources.

On September 1, the city of Kaspiisk will solemnly open a new power-engineering college, where places will be reserved for the persons who have undergone the commission for adaptation of militants to peaceful life, said the managers of the new institution.

Today, the Control and Disciplinary Committee of the Russian Football Union (RFU) has passed a number of decisions on the outcomes of the events that took place on August 21 in the football match "Anji"-"Dynamo". Gadji Gadjiev, the head coach of the "Anji" FC from Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, was disqualified for four matches.

This year the Prize "Witnesses of Peace", established by the Italian city of Ovada, will be awarded to human rights activist from Chechnya Shakman Akbulatov.

Today, about 50 activists of different youth organizations of Azerbaijan held a picket near the Iranian Embassy in Baku with a demand to save Lake Urmia from ecological catastrophe.

The consideration of the criminal case initiated against the natives of Chechnya Apti and Aishat Magmadov, accused of involvement in illegal armed formations (IAFs), has been postponed until September 5, because Egle Kusaite's evidences have not arrived to the Moscow Regional Court.

As reported today by Rashid Nurgaliev, Russian Interior Minister, at his meeting with the heads of his subdivisions in the North-Caucasian Federal District, the triple terror act committed in the Lenin District of Grozny killed 9 persons.

The family of Ivan Agafonov, 19, who died from a punch of Rasul Mirzaev, a native of Dagestan and world champion in mixed martial arts, asked investigators for protection. The athlete's advocate Igor Dergachov argues that Rasul Mirzaev's girlfriend is threatened; and "there are grounds to believe that witnesses may occur under pressure."

Ten projects submitted by participants from the city of Prokhladny, Kabardino-Balkaria, to the contest within the Youth Forum "Mashuk-2011", which was held in July in Pyatigorsk, received grants.

After a month break, the closed trial of Serob Ter-Pogosyan, ex-adviser of Armenian Prime Minister, accused of paedophilia, was resumed. The defendant denies commission of any violent sexual acts and asserts that he had sexual intercourses with children with their consent.

On August, 28, the Presidential Committee for adaptation of gunmen of the Republic of Dagestan organized a meeting between representatives of mass media and the family of a young man who disappeared 2,5 months before. His relatives consider it most probable that he has “gone to the forest” and recorded a video message for him asking him to return home.

According to the latest data, eight people perished as a result of two explosions which happened on August, 30, in Grozny and no less that 16 persons got wounded.

The death of a police major, Chief of Soviet settlement police department of the Ministry of Interior Affairs in Novokubansky district, is under investigation in Krasnodar region. The investigators initiated a criminal case on the fact of incitement of the policeman to a suicide. A note of the officials’ corruption was found in his car. This was reported by regional Investigative Department of Committee of Inquiry of the Russian Federation.

On August, 30, deputies of the People’s Assembly of Nagorno-Karabakh adopted a decision of announcing amnesty in honour of the 20-th anniversary of declaration of independence of Nagorno-Karabakh. It is already the sixth amnesty in Nagorno-Karabakh for the period of 20 years. About 20 per cent convicts will be released on the amnesty.

In Grozny, at night on August 30 a supposed suicide bomber blew him up at a detention attempt. As a result, the blast killed four people and wounded other five, said a source from the republic's law enforcement bodies.

In the Rostov Region, after August 25, operative groups of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) and the Federal Security Bureau (FSB) searched the houses of 19 Jehovah's Witnesses. This was reported by Gregory Martynov from the press service of the Administrative Centre of this religious organization.

On September 2, the city of Beslan, North Ossetia, will open an architectural and sculptural composition "Good Angel of Peace" in memory of the victims of the terror act committed in September 2004 at School No. 1.

In Elista, the capital of Kalmykia, the Foundation named "Miloserdiye" (Mercy), located in the temple-chapel of St Sergius of Radonezh, is gathering clothes, stationery items and toys for children from poor and needy families. Gifts for September 1 will be also brought to the Elista orphanage for mentally retarded children and social shelter.

According to the decree of the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, signed on August 29, the elections of Deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation will be held on December 4, 2011. This year, the parties' threshold barrier was brought down to 5 percent; while the term in office went up to 5 years. In parallel with the federal elections, the South of Russia – Ingushetia, Stavropol Territory and Astrakhan Region – will elect their regional parliaments.