News

In the course of the week from April 18 to April 24 at least 19 persons were killed and at least 7 more wounded in the armed conflict in Northern Caucasus. These are the results of calculations made by the "Caucasian Knot" on the basis of its own materials and information from other open sources.

As reported by the press service of the Defence Army of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), yesterday, on April 28, as a result of the fire opened from the Azerbaijani side, Vazgen Bakhshyan, a conscript of the Defence Army, was shot dead.

The Supreme Court of North Ossetia has sentenced Kharun Yunusov, accused of kidnappings for ransom, to 15 years in a high security colony; however, given the fact that under the 2004 verdict of the Supreme Court of the Chechen Republic he had served 6 years in prison, his remaining term is 9 years.

On April 28, a trial was held in Astrakhan on the case of Oleg Teplischev, accused of assaulting Deputy Rifkat Shabanov. Despite the fact that Teplischev was on the sick leave, he was detained on his way to the clinic, and convoyed by policemen to the court.

The former deputy head of the city administration of Rostov-on-Don is suspected of abuse his duties at implementation of the comprehensive surveillance programme named "Safe City", which spent 198 million roubles from the state budget.

On April, 28, the Government of Georgia considered changes to the law "On Legal Status of Foreigners" according to which citizens of a number of countries, in particular, Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Iraq will be able to enter Georgia without visas.

A new session of the Moscow City Court on the criminal case of slander initiated against Oleg Orlov, Head of "Memorial" Human Rights Center in connection with his statement about the responsibility of Head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov for the murder of member of HRC "Memorial" Natalia Estemirova passed off on April, 28. Head of Chechnya bore witness via visual communication channel while we was in the office of the Supreme Court of Chechnya.

The Krasnodar Territory held events to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident. The territorial capital marked the mournful date with opening of a monument to liquidators of the accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (NPP).

Unidentified persons triggered an explosive device near a pub in the village of Sultanyangiyurt, Kizilyurt District of Dagestan, at the moment, when an operative-investigatory group arrived there; five policemen were contused.

The Georgian journalist Levan Gudadze, who fled to Russia in early September of 2009, wants to return to Georgia, because of lack of safety guarantees for him and his family. To achieve his return, he is ready to go on hunger strike near the Swiss Embassy in Moscow.

Investigation of the criminal cases opened after the explosions triggered on April 26 continues. Power agents are interrogating visitors from Northern Caucasus and activists of the non-systemic opposition.

In the west of Moscow, after a slight road accident a mass brawl burst out among 15 citizens of Russia and Azerbaijan. One man was hospitalized, said a source from law enforcement bodies.

The store burned down at night on April 22 in the village of Khasanya in Kabardino-Balkaria did not sell alcohol. According to some sources, the owner of the shop refused to pay tribute to members of the armed underground.

The Prosecutor's Office of Chechnya has revealed facts of illegal overpricing of medicines in pharmacies. Administrative cases have been initiated against the owners of two pharmacies.

The Parliament of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) has recalled the legislative initiative on amending the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which assumed criminal liability of criminals' spouses or close relatives for sheltering and non-reporting about grave crimes.

Last night a triggered combat grenade F-1 was thrown into the yard of the liturgical buildings of Jehovah's Witnesses in the city of Nartkala (Kabardino-Balkaria). The grenade failed to explode, but it blew up later, in the course of de-mining. Nobody was hurt.

Today, the head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov answered - by means of the video conference - the questions of the magistrate court of the Khamovniki District of Moscow and stated that the words of the head of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" Oleg Orlov about of his guilt in the murder of rights defender Estemirova had tarnished his honour and dignity. Kadyrov said that he wanted to have Orlov criminally prosecuted.

The jury engaged in the trial of the murder case of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist of the "Novaya Gazeta" Anastasia Baburova has found the defendants in the case - Nikita Tikhonov and Eugenia Khasis - guilty of the crime.

As reported by the National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC), today in the course of three special operations in Dagestan law enforcement bodies liquidated six suspected militants.

In Armenia, the government has already fulfilled two out of the three main demands of the opposition. The third one remains - to release political prisoners. This was stated by former president Levon Ter-Petrosyan, leader of the Armenian National Congress (ANC), said at the rally on April 28.