News

The international human rights organization Amnesty International (AI) has addressed its appeal to the official Brussels stating that violations of human rights, first of all in Northern Caucasus, and restrictions of the freedom of self-expression should be put on the debate agenda of the forthcoming Summit the European Union-Russian Federation, to open on May 30 in Rostov-on-Don.

Under decision of the Emergency Commission under the Government of the Astrakhan Region, the state of emergency has been introduced in the whole territory of the region because of a threat of locust invasion.

Today, Alexander Khloponin, Plenipotentiary of Russian President in the North-Caucasian Federal District (NGFD), told journalists that because of failure to take due security measures in Stavropol, where the explosion on May 26 killed 7 persons, he ordered to open criminal cases on service negligence.

Telo Tulku Rinchope, Supreme Llama of Kalmykia, addressed his open letter to Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, in the context of the refusal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Russia to give an entrance visa to Dalai Lama for visiting Russia. Mr Rinchope assures Mr Lavrov that Dalai Lama's relations with the Russian Buddhists have never had any political shading.

A singer from Georgia Sofiko Nizharadze has entered the ten of best performers and qualified for the final of "Eurovision-2010".

A branch of the Movement "In the Name of Georgia", which unites Georgian Diasporas of 53 regions of Russia, aiming to achieve, through charitable and cultural actions, closer relations of Russian and Georgian peoples, will be opened un North Ossetia.

Today, the Stavropol Territory has a day of mourning over the victims of the terror act committed on May 26. In the whole territory, banners and flags are half-mast; TV Companies and culture establishments were recommended to cancel their entertaining broadcasts and events.

As reported by Valery Ustov, head of the Investigatory Department for the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) of the Russian ICPO (Investigatory Committee under the Prosecutor's Office), as of today the KBR is under the special complex preventive operation (SCPO) regime.

Residents of the flooded areas of Azerbaijan who have lost their houses as a result of the calamity report that they received no compensation. Many of them have to live in the open air.

The Board of Atamans of the All-Great Don Army has addressed the Cossack population of the Don River area to be active at the census planned in October 2010.

The participants of the conference "Freedom of Conscience and Faith" held on May 27 in Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, emphasized the need of consolidation of the society before the terrorist threat.

On May 27, in the southwest of Chechnya, a self-made explosive item was triggered and wounded two shepherds who were tending their sheep.

Inspectors are studying several versions of the terror act committed in the centre of Stavropol on May 26, in particular, they think that it could be a militants' action or some commerce-based "showdown".

On 27 May, in front of South Ossetia Embassy in Moscow, relatives and colleagues of three Russia's citizens that had been arrested in Tskhinvali, hold a series of single pickets. In protestors' opinion, Russia's citizens are being victimized in the republic.

On May 26, Georgia's Independence Day, the memorial to heroes who died for the freedom and unity of the Georgian state was opened in the Square of Heroes in Tbilisi.

Today early in the morning, a self-made explosive item was triggered in a suburb of the city of Malgobek, Ingushetia; nobody has suffered.

Today, Buddhists celebrate the most important anniversary of their religious calendar - the birthday, enlightenments and departure to Parinibbana of Buddha Shakyamuni. This year this day falls on May 27.

Among victims of Stavropol terror act of 26 May, 19 persons are in a grave and extremely grave condition, the Russian Federation Prosecutor's Office liaison department officer reported. Death toll hits 7, wounded - 45.

Azerbaijan faces serious problems with gender mainstreaming and women's rights protection. That was the key note of the press conference on 26 May given by PACE delegation participated in Council of Europe Conference of Minister members "Gender equality: bridging the gap between de jure and de facto equality" that was held on 24-25 May in Baku.

Today the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled on the case "Hutsaev and others against the Russian Federation", found Russia guilty of illegal detention and subsequent disappearance of three inhabitants of Chechnya.