News

Today, a group of the non-parliamentary opposition of Georgia held a march in the Isani-Samgor District of Tbilisi with a demand to release the country's political prisoners.

Today, the members of the Council of Federation have actually started the reform of the European Court on Human Rights (ECtHR), having ratified the 14th Protocol to the European Convention on Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), which deals with the Strasbourg Court.

The Russian ICPO has dismissed charges from Magomed Edilsultanov, a defendant in the case on the murders of the editor-in-chief of the Russian Forbes Paul Khlebnikov and former vice-premier of Chechnya Yan Sergunin.

Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov has stated that the murder of Natalia Estemirova, a human rights defender and employee of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", committed in Chechnya in July 2009, was provoked by Boris Berezovsky with the aim to compromise the republic's authorities.

By the preliminary data, over 30,000 persons in Makhachkala and other districts of Dagestan are cut off from electricity and heat supplies. The authorities assure that they do everything possible and call not to panic.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is seriously concerned that under the aegis of 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics rights of Russian citizens are broken. This was stated by Brita Worner, an official representative of the IOC, in her telephone conversation with lawyer Evgeniy Arkhipov, chairman of the Association of Russian Lawyers for Human Rights, which is defending the residents of Matveevka village, situated near Moscow.

According to Nurdi Nukhazhiev, Ombudsman in Chechnya, there are no grounds to accuse any republic's power agency of kidnapping Islam Umarpashaev, a resident of Chechnya. The head of the press service of the MIA on the Chechen Republic refused to communicate with the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on the kidnapping issue.

The Investigatory Committee at the Prosecutor's Office (ICPO) of the Russian Federation denies the information spread today by certain media that the inquiry has identified the suspect of murdering Orthodox priest Daniel Sysoev; however, the criminal hides abroad.

Today, the Investigatory Committee at the Prosecutor's Office (ICPO) of the Russian Federation has notified the victims in the murder case of Hero of Russia, ex-deputy Ruslan Yamadaev that they can start familiarizing themselves with the materials of the case.

The President's decree is expected by February 1 on replacing the current President of the Republic Dagestan Mukhu Aliev, 70, by Magomed Abdulaev, 48. This was stated by a source from Russian President's retinue.

Political figures and experts of Dagestan diverge in their opinions on establishment of the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD) and appointment of Alexander Khloponin to the post of President's plenipotentiary in the new district. Recent statements of Dmitri Medvedev and Vladimir Putin as to development prospects of the region are also perceived differently.

The Yasamal District Court of Azerbaijan has postponed the litigation earlier appointed for January 25 on the suit of Ramil Usubov, Interior Minister, lodged under procedure of a special charge against Eyub Kerimov, editor-in-chief of the "Femida-007" newspaper.

Within the protest action against the verdict passed on January 19 in Armenia to Nikol Pashinyan, the GALA TV Company is holding a cycle of live open TV debates.

The National Council on Appraisal Activities (NCAA) has drafted Methodical Guidelines on appraising the property alienated for Olympic needs. The earlier different interpretations of appraisal rules and norms as regards land plots and dwelling houses in Sochi have been harmonised.

President of South Ossetia Eduard Kokoity has held a meeting with bosses of local power agencies. The main topic was service discipline in subdivisions and counteraction to illegal drugs circulation.

The state prosecution has refused to appeal against the verdict passed by the Novgorod Regional Court on the case of the first explosion of the "Neva-Express" train in 2007. In the course of investigation of this crime, the bribe case was returned to the first instance court.

In the course of the visit of the members of the Public Observation Commission (POC) of Novorossisk to the Krasnodar-based IVS (temporary isolation facility), ex-Major of Militia Alexei Dymovskiy said that he felt no pressure. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent learnt about it from Vadim Karastelyov, an expert of the Novorossisk Committee of Human Rights and Alexei Dymovskiy's official representative.

The Federal Supervising Service in the Sphere of Telecom, Information Technologies and Mass Communications ("Roskomnadzor") has warned the editorial board of the magazine "Kommersant-Vlast" on inadmissibility of extremist activity. The reason was the interview with Issa Kodzoev, a writer from Ingushetia. The workers of the magazine partially agree with the Service.

As stated by Svetlana Gannushkina, head of the Committee "Civil Assistance", the criminal investigation on Natalia Estemirova's murder faces problems, although inspectors are still going to round it up. Oleg Orlov, head of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", believes that involvement of power agents in her murder should be considered as one of the main versions in searching the criminals.

The Council of Europe does a lot to urge Azerbaijan to execute its liabilities before this organization. This was stated on January 25 in Strasbourg by Luis Maria de Puch, head of the PACE Assembly before the opening of the winter session. It was his last press conference as the head of the PACE in connection with the expiry of his two years in office.