News

Magomed Mutaelumov, a resident of Makhachkala, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent today that the pilgrims of Dagestan who failed to make their hadj because of the red tape with drawing their documents are preparing protest actions.

Within the last year, Russia saw stronger pressure on those who defend human rights in Chechnya and in Northern Caucasus as a whole; therefore, the European Union should present "unambiguous demands to Russia to take particular steps towards stronger defence of human rights in Northern Caucasus." This is stated in the address of human rights activists to the government of Sweden, the chair-country of the EU, and the European Union as a whole, dated to the "Russia-EU" Summit in Stockholm.

On November 18, a documentary "Letter to Anna", dedicated to journalist Anna Politkovskaya, made on the basis of conversations of director Eric Bergkraut with Politkovskaya in 2003-2004, was presented.

In the city of Volzhskiy, Volgograd Region, militia major, captain and lieutenant were detained on suspicion of trying to plant drugs and money on the woman-figurant of a criminal case.

In the Kaliningrad Region, a prosecutor's check has established that a group of sailors recruited from Dagestan had repeatedly hazed their younger colleagues recruited to the Baltic Fleet in spring of 2009.

Manana Archvadze-Gamsakhurdia, mother of Tsotne Gamsakhurdia, is going to continue her hunger strike until her son is released. The detainee's supporters demand an objective investigation.

On November 26, in Los Angeles, under the initiative of the All-Armenian Foundation "Ayastan" another charitable telethon event will be held. The funds raised in the course of it will go to restoration and development of the city of Shusha in Nagorno-Karabakh. Residents of Nagorno-Karabakh will also traditionally take part in the action.

In North Ossetia, on November 18, the All-Russian Public Organization "Voice of Beslan" founded a new social movement "For Status of Terror Act Victims", where the aim is to enforce legalization of the status of terror act victims. This was reported by Ella Kesaeva, head of the "Voice of Beslan".

The "Caucasian Knot" is placing its content into the information layers on Yandex.Maps to provide more opportunities to Runet visitors for getting acquainted with unique places in the Caucasus and pieces of its history embodied in tales and legends. With this aim the project "Maps of Peaceful Caucasus" has been created, which allows making a fascinating on-line journey over the region.

On November 17 in Brussels, in the course of the Forum on Civil Society of the countries-participants of the programme initiated by the European Union (EU) under the name of "Eastern Partnership", Emin Guseinov, Director of the Institute of Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS), delivered applications related to the freedom of speech and press in Azerbaijan to the EU leaders.

On November 17, Captain Alexander Popkov, a valid worker of the military prosecutor's office from Sochi, placed his video appeal in the Internet, in which he confirmed earlier statements of Militia Major from Novorossisk Alexei Dymovskiy.

Ibragim Mankiev, a native of Ingushetia, who was kidnapped in Egypt, was in fact detained by local special agencies as a suspect of links with Wahhabites.

An unidentified person is threatening to apply physical violence to the members of the interim parliamentary commission that was set up for studying the circumstances of the death of the first president of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia, should the commission goes on with their work. This was stated by Mirian Patarkatsishvili, a member of the political movement "Freedom", at a special press conference held on November 17.

The international human rights organization Amnesty International (AI) has launched a campaign in support of the bloggers Adnan Gadjizade and Emin Milli, convicted in Azerbaijan to imprisonment on charges of hooliganism.

As reported by Intigam Gumbatov, press secretary of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan, in his conversation with the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, a great damage to the country's cultural heritage was caused by the occupation of the territory of Azerbaijan.

The son of the head of administration of the city of Buinaksk Magomedshamil Shakhbanov, who was kidnapped on November 17, is now at large. Five suspects of the crime are detained. This was reported by a source in law enforcement bodies of Dagestan.

European leaders should use the November 18-19 Stockholm Summit to voice out their concern of deteriorated situation with human rights in Russia and call Moscow to its actual improvement. This was stated by the international Human Rights Watch (HRW) organization, which noted that lately in Russia at least five civil activists were killed, and others faced pressure.

Today, the United Information Centre (UIC) of the law enforcement bodies of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) has reported about prevention of a terror act at the Aushiger Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) located in the Cherek District of the republic.

Residents of an apartment house at the central Baku have stated that they are ready to commit a mass suicide with the aim to prevent demolition of their house.

The funds allocated by the USA for building houses for refugees from the Leningorsk District of South Ossetia, have been spent to build a military base. This was stated by Boris Chochiev, plenipotentiary envoy of President of South Ossetia for post-conflict settlement.