News

In response to the decision of the Armenian opposition to suspend the talks, the ruling coalition has issued a statement accusing the oppositional Armenian National Congress (ANC) of disrupting the negotiation process and distorting facts.

In Georgia, due to cold weather, some of mountain resorts, in particular, the resort of Bakuriani had to end their summer season.

In Dagestan, the heads of municipal education departments are encouraged to introduce in schools positions of ombudspersons in charge of defending the rights of participants of the education process. This is stated in the letter signed by Natella Musaleva, Deputy Minister of Education of the Republic of Dagestan.

Observers from IS-EMO and “Research Foundation for problems of democracy in the countries of CIS” consider that voting on the day of election of President of Abkhazia was organized at a high level and the process was going on without technical failures.

The Basmanny Court of Moscow has sanctioned the arrest of former militia officer Dmitry Pavlyuchenkov, a suspected (by the investigation) organizer of the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, an observer of the "Novaya Gazeta".

The Armenian Ministry of Justice has presented amendments to the Law "On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations", which assumes, inter alia, criminal liability for forced involvement of people in non-traditional religious organizations, groups and sects, and introduces the term "soul fishing" (proselytizing).

On August 25, at the trial, where the attack on the Baksan Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) is considered, witnesses were questioned, including employees of the plant and operative agents.

Chechnya suffers from deficit of educational institutions and lacks teachers. By the new school year the Republic's schools have more than 800 vacancies, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told by a source from the Ministry of Education and Sciences of Chechnya.

The Supreme Court of Dagestan has sentenced Gadjimurad Khulataev, 19, accused on ordering the killing of his father – Lieutenant Colonel of Justice Yunus Khulataev – to 15 years of high security colony.

On August 25 the Moscow police suppressed an attempt of nationalist-minded young people to organize an unauthorized march to the building of the Zamoskovoretskiy Court, which considers the case of Rasul Mirzaev, the world champion in mixed martial arts, accused of involvement in the death of student Ivan Agafonov.

Novocherkassk city court suspended Head of municipal Administration Vladislav Zhuravlev accused of fomentation of interethnic animosity from office for the period of investigation.

Armenian National Congress broke off its participation in the dialogue with the authorities of Armenia and will return to the negotiating table only after alteration of preventive punishment for activist Tigran Arakelyan. This was reported by Levon Zurabyan, coordinator of ANC, leader of the delegation of oppositionists at the negotiation.

All the motions of the defense party entered on August, 25, at a preliminary session on the case of organization of disturbances in Manezhnaya square of Moscow last December were declined today. The first hearing of the case on the merits was appointed for September, 7.

On August 26 a protest action will be held at the building of the Dagestani Prosecutor's Office, where people will demand to release three residents of the Kizlyar District, detained under suspicion of helping militants.

Georgian experts are not unanimous regarding the unconstitutional nature of Article 314 of the Criminal Code (espionage).

The Sabail District Court of Baku has announced its sentence to six oppositionists accused of violating public order during the unsanctioned rally on April 2. The defendants were given from 1.5 to 3 years of imprisonment.

The foreign observers who have arrived in Abkhazia have promised that they will be able to control the course of the presidential election.

Sport officials, coaches and athletes believe that only the court should define the guilt of Rasul Mirzaev, the world champion in sambo, who was arrested in the case of the death of a student Ivan Agafonov.

On August 21 the Rashid Aushev Stadium in Nazran hosted a football match in the southern zone of the second division of Russian championship between "Angusht" (Nazran) and "Fayur" (Beslan). In the first-ever football match between Ingushetia and North Ossetia not on the neutral pitch "Fayur" beat "Angusht" 2:0.

Volgograd regional court dismissed the case on the lawsuit of Alexander Galuzo who demanded adoption of the decision of announcement of direct election of Head of Volgograd.