News

In Azerbaijan, the independent journalists and bloggers who expose corruption are under pressure and persecution, the participants of the conference on the state of media in the country have stated.

The opposition is preparing to storm the parliament building, the National Security Service of Armenia has announced, warning protesters of criminal liability. The parliament building is under heavy police protection.

In Northern Caucasus, transgender people face rejection from their relatives and friends and persecution, and they are exposed to mortal danger, therefore they prefer to hide their sexual orientation and leave their native lands, but they also face difficulties with employment and documents outside their homeland.

The police act aggressively while detaining people at protest actions in Armenia, and a number of activists have been injured, Ombudsperson Kristine Grigoryan reports.

Artilleryman Vadim Shekurov perished in Ukraine, the Temryuk district administration reported. Since the beginning of the special military operation in Ukraine, the information about at least 19 perished natives of the Krasnodar Territory has been officially confirmed.

Law enforcers have begun detaining opposition supporters who blocked the Kyiv Bridge located in central Yerevan.

After his participation in an action against a special operation in Ukraine, a Krasnodar court has upheld the fine imposed on Denis Dolgushin, a resident of Krasnodar, for his alleged discrediting the Russian Armed Forces.

Elchin Mamed, an Azerbaijani human rights defender and a journalist has refused to eat while demanding his release from jail. Mr Mamed, who is suffering from serious illnesses, has decided to go on a hunger strike because he has despaired of gaining freedom, human rights defenders have noted.

In Tbilisi, protesters demand a meeting with the US ambassador aiming to tell him about the state of health of Mikheil (Mikhail) Saakashvili, the third president of Georgia, and ask for help in setting Saakashvili free. His health condition has worsened, an oppositional MP has informed.

In recent days, the situation on the contact line near the village of Khramort has been calm; several families have returned to the village, but agrarian works can't be performed, the administration of the Askeran District of Nagorno-Karabakh has reported.

Despite its progress from the 167th to 154th place in the World Press Freedom Index, Azerbaijan remains among the countries with a non-free press.

An oppositional rally held in France Square in Yerevan gathered up to 7000 people, the police have informed. After Nikol Pashinyan's resignation, an interim government will be formed, Ishkhan Sagatelyan, an oppositional MP, has stated.

According to a journalistic investigation conducted by the “Vazhnye Istorii” (Important Stories)*, associates of Ramzan Kadyrov own apartments and villas in Dubai worth from hundreds of thousands to several million US dollars.

In Yerevan, 209 activists were detained for failure to obey the police, and 28 more people were taken to police stations in the regions of Armenia, the Armenia police reported.

Djalil Zabidov, an activist of the “Democracy-1918” movement, was detained, and the police used physical methods of influence, demanding from him to stop criticism of the authorities, the activist himself said. The police announced that Djalil Zabidov tried to disrupt an exam.

Today, 155 protesters have been detained in Yerevan for failure to obey the police, and 14 more activists have been detained in the Gegarkunik and Ararat Regions.

There were no grounds to extend the house arrest for the blogger, Insa Lander, from the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), Dmitry Zakhvatov, an advocate, has stated. Insa's friends have opened a fundraiser to pay for her rented housing.

By congratulating Adam Delimkhanov, a Russsian State Duma MP from Chechnya, on being awarded the title of Hero of Russia after his return from Ukraine, Ramzan Kadyrov has emphasized his and Chechen authorities' loyalty to the Kremlin, analysts believe.

During the disobedience actions staged by the Armenian opposition in Yerevan, law enforcers detained 70 people. All the detainees are charged with disobedience to the police.

Oppositionists have blocked several streets in Yerevan demanding the resignation of the Armenian Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan. In order to unblock the traffic, law enforcers began detaining protesters.