News

When commenting on the actions of the police who forbade a resident of Sochi from laying flowers at the monument to the victims of repression, lawyers have noted that laying flowers at monuments cannot be compared with throwing out household garbage in a wrong place, and the ban on holding such commemorative events violates the law.

Funeral of Alexei Navalny* and Caucasus, refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh, persecution of pacifists and activists in Southern Russia, six suspects killed in Ingushetia, sentence to Nikita Zhuravel, and official data on the natives of Southern Russia who perished in Ukraine, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of February 26-March 3, 2024, prepared by the “Caucasian Knot”.

The “Runaways” film by journalist Vladimir Sevrinovsky is included in the programme of the “Artdocfest Online” documentary film festival.

The police detained at least 105 people in Russian regions at rallies in memory of Alexei Navalny, including four in Astrakhan, two in Sochi, and one person in Vladikavkaz. The above information has been reported by the “OVD-Info”* human rights project.

Ramzan Kadyrov has removed the approval of Judaists from Putin's speech so as not to cause discontent among Muslims amid the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, analysts have pointed out.

After Navalny's funeral, Sochi policemen did not allow a local woman to lay flowers at the monument to repression victims, stating that this was only allowed on the Remembrance Day for Victims of Political Repressions; and on other days it is treated as an administrative offence.

During a shootout in Karabulak, law enforcers have killed six militants, the Russian National Antiterrorism Committee (NAC) has reported. The counterterrorist operation (CTO) regime has been cancelled; the operative headquarters of Ingushetia has informed.

Oleg Orlov*, a human rights defender, has been placed under quarantine at the "Kapotnya" Moscow SIZO (pre-trial prison), where the custody conditions there can be treated as satisfactory, Oleg's wife and advocate have informed.

While quoting President Putin's address to the Federal Assembly in his Telegram channel, Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Chechnya, has censored the fragment, in which the Russian President mentioned in a positive way the militaries from among the followers of Judaism.

Journalists from Dagestan Magomed Magomedov and Idris Yusupov* request the authorities to bring law enforcers to responsibility for violating their rights during protest actions. Although the situations of Magomed Magomedov and Idris Yusupov* are different, the law enforcers acted unlawfully in both cases, lawyers point out.

In different Russian regions, including North Ossetia, at least 21 people were detained because of Alexei Navalny's funeral, human rights defenders have reported. According to their stories, about half of the detainees had tried to get to the farewell ceremony held in Moscow.

A young woman from Astrakhan, an activist of the "Russia behind Bars" (Rus Sidyaschaya) Fund*, was detained after laying flowers at the monument to victims of political repressions, Olga Romanova**, a human rights defender and the head of the Fund, has reported.

The sanctions imposed by Western countries on the regional heads of Northern Caucasus are of a political nature; they have no real economic impact on them, since their interests are concentrated in the Middle East, analysts believe.

An administration of a penal colony in the Kurgan Region regularly places in solitary confinement Omar Murtazaliev, a native of Dagestan, as punishment. About a month ago, the convict recorded a video message in which he complained about violations of the prisoners’ rights.

A court in Makhachkala has unreasonably refused to satisfy the claim of Idris Yusupov* against the police in connection with his detention at an anti-mobilization action; this is stated in the complaint, now considered by the Supreme Court (SC) of Dagestan. The spokeswoman for the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has stated that Yusupov* was not detained.

Several people heading to the farewell venue for Alexei Navalny in Moscow were detained by law enforcers, human rights defenders have informed. The queue to the temple where the coffin with Alexei's body was delivered has reached a kilometre.

Askhabali Alibekov, a native of Dagestan, an author of the “Wild Paratrooper” YouTube channel, who is serving an arrest in Kazan, is suspected of using violence against a policeman, his advocate reports.

The Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) included the “Memorial” Centre for Defence of Human Rights* in the register of foreign agents. The decision was made three days after the verdict against Oleg Orlov*, the co-chair of the “Memorial” Centre for Defence of Human Rights*, under the charge of discrediting the Russian Armed Forces.

FSB officers detained a 19-year-old resident of Volgograd at the local airport when he tried to leave for Turkey. Investigators have charged the detained young man with high treason, as they suggest that he was transferring money to a charitable foundation created by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Investigators have refused four times to initiate a criminal case against the law enforcers involved in beating up Semyon Sukhinin, who was detained in the city of Anapa. The results of the checks show the investigator's reluctance to deal with the torture complaint, human rights defenders have pointed out.