News

Lawyer Ruslan Datsaev from the Dagestan city of Khasavyurt managed to meet Zakhar Labazangadjiev, a resident of settlement Novaya Tsoloda, Akhvakh District of Dagestan, who was kidnapped on March 31 by unknown armed persons from his own house. The meeting took place at the temporary custody facility (the so-called "ISO") of the Shali ROVD in Chechnya. The "Caucasian Knot" was told today about it by Mr Datsaev.

As reported by an employee of one of the local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), engaged in human rights defence and legal aid to citizens, last week, two city dwellers of Shali were detained and taken away to some unknown location by employees of some unidentified power agency.

Today residents of Tbilisi came to the Memorial of April 9 casualties in the Rustaveli Avenue, erected in the place, where 21 years ago - in April 1989 - peaceful demonstrators perished at dispersal by Soviet authorities of a multi-thousand-strong rally.

As reported by a source in law enforcement bodies of Kabardino-Balkaria, in the evening on April 7, in the city of Baksan, unidentified persons shot dead two militiamen.

Some experts believe that Dokku Umarov, leader of North-Caucasian underground, has managed to unite Islamic rebels and organized their respective infrastructure; however, in the opinion of President of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov, Umarov is incapable and "dies from famine." Along with that, after the terror acts committed in the country with participation of suicide-bombers, opinions are expressed that because of the terrorist activity, the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi located in the centre of the Caucasian Mountains are under threat; while sources in Chechnya report new traffic of military columns in various directions.

Today, the Moscow City Court has found the leaders of a skinhead grouping Arthur Ryno and Pavel Skachevskiy guilty of new episodes of nationalism-motivated attacks; however, the court decided not to toughen the punishment appointed in the first verdict - 10 years of imprisonment. The verdict is based on the jurymen's conclusion.

The Chief Investigatory Department of the Investigatory Committee at the Prosecutor's Office (ICPO) of the Russian Federation has sent the case about the attempt on July 28, 2009, on Isa Yamadaev, brother of ex-MP Ruslan Yamadaev and the ex-commander of the "Vostok" battalion Sulim Yamadaev. This was reported by the ICPO. According to the investigation, the attempter on Yamadaev was Khavazh Yusupov, 24, a native of Chechnya.

Today in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, two clashes happened of the opposition united into the "National Council" with the police. Oppositionists, while asserting that the authorities exert pressure on printing houses, tried to enter the sealed up building of the printing house "Tbilisilebi" aiming to take their propaganda literature, which was prepared for the local elections appointed on May 30.

On March 31, activists of the United Civil Front (UCF), Left-Wing Front (LWF) and other public organizations went out to their pre-applied action held under the all-Russian "Strategy 31" campaign in defence of Article 31 of the Constitution that assumes the freedom of assembly.

Within the section "Role of regional systems of human rights defence in strengthening national justice systems" of the 37th Congress of the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), which is now on in Yerevan, human rights activists from the "Memorial" shared their practical experience of defending human rights in Chechnya.

Today, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has passed a decision on the complaint "Abaeva et al versus Russia", having ruled that Russian government should pay compensation of moral damage of 60,000 euros to relatives of the kidnapped citizens of Chechnya Magomed-Ali Abaev and Anvar Shaipov.

Today, Tsotne Gamsakhurdia, son of ex-president of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia, was found guilty of illegal keeping of firearms and a murder attempt.

Leval Gachechiladze, leader of the oppositional public movement "Defend Georgia", prepares an action against President of Georgia Mikhail Saakashvili in the context of the scandalous TV programme "Chronicle" broadcast by the "Imedi" TV Company. The report showed a simulated invasion of Russian troops and assassination of the President.

On April 6 inspectors found the body of one of the children who disappeared in March. The search of the two remaining ones continues with the help of a drone.

Anastasia Denisova, a human rights defender from Krasnodar and head of public organization "ETnIKA", whose criminal case was delivered from the court to the prosecutor's office for elimination of drawbacks, believes that the organizers of her criminal and judicial prosecution have hit their true target - deprived her of opportunities to work properly.

The Georgia's Ministry on Refugees' Matters and Accommodation has granted the refugee status to warrant officer Vitaly Khripun, a Russian frontier guard, who on December 21, 2009, deserted from his military unit deployed in Sinagur village in South Ossetia.

The Moscow City Court has rejected the advocate's cassation complaint and upheld the arrest of Timur Kartoev, a defendant in the case dealing with the blowing up of the "Neva-Express" train in November 2009. Kartoev was behind bars on March 4 by the Basmanny Court of Moscow.

Two natives of Dagestan, aged 27, are suspected of sending out false messages from a mobile phone about a prepared explosion of a school in the south of Moscow.

On April 7, the Supreme Court (SC) of Azerbaijan, chaired by Ali Seifaliev, considered the cassation complaint lodged by Sayara Geidarova, who was earlier found guilty of beating four men. The supreme judicial instance of the country upheld the verdict of guilty.

Today, medical establishments of Moscow are still treating 75 victims of the explosions triggered in Moscow metro stations on March 29.