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The numerous kidnappings of relatives of Kadyrov's critics living in Chechnya and Astrakhan have become an unprecedented method of combating the dissent; and there will be retribution for the abducted women, the Chechen blogger, Tumso Abdurakhmanov, has promised at a rally in Strasbourg.

Armenian citizens held captive in Azerbaijan are subjected to violence for their religious beliefs, Arman Tatoyan, the Armenian Ombudsperson, has stated. Armenian authorities are doing nothing to bring Azerbaijan to responsibility for the cruel treatment of prisoners of war (POWs), human rights defenders assert.

On January 8, the French city of Strasbourg hosted a rally in front of the Council of Europe building held against mass kidnappings of relatives of the activists and bloggers oppositional to Chechen authorities, as well as against using torture in Russian jails.

On the 100th day in custody of Mikheil (Mikhail) Saakashvili, the third president of Georgia, his supporters, while holding during a rally near the Rustavi Prison, announced the formation of disobedience groups and the start of anti-government rallies throughout the country.

Akhmed Dudaev, the Minister of Press and Information of Chechnya, has posted a story refuting the kidnappings of relatives of critics of Chechen authorities by showing a video with relatives of Khasan Khalitov and Akhmed Zakaev. In response, Khalitov has stated that it was a show staged by Chechen authorities, while he still has no information about the whereabouts of his relatives.

In front of the residence of the President of Azerbaijan in Baku, Giyas Ibragimov, a youth activist, took a canister with some liquid out of his backpack, then took a lighter in his hand and went to the residence building. Presidential security guards took the canister and lighter away from him, and detained the activist.

The UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) has included Lekso Lashkarava, a cameraman of the "Pirveli" TV Company, on the list of killed journalists, without having experts' conclusions on the reasons for his death, the Georgia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has stated.

Bloggers and activists have called on all those not indifferent to take part in the action "Chechen lives matter" dedicated to human rights violations in Chechnya.

The Chechen Supreme Court (SC) has left Salekh Magamadov and Ismail Isaev in custody until March 26.

The deployment of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) troops in Kazakhstan because of the protests underway in the country is unacceptable, protesters in Tbilisi have stated.

Due to the anti-covid restrictions, the traditional "Alilo" Christmas march was held in Tbilisi in the form of a car rally; priests aspersed streets from inside cars. In Kutaisi and Kvareli, the marches took place in the traditional format.

Lekso Lashkarava, a cameraman of the Georgian "Pirveli" TV Company, has been included by the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) into the list of killed journalists.

Russian and international human rights organizations appealed to the Russian President with a request to do everything possible to end the repressions in Chechnya, ensure that human rights violations, committed by the Chechen authorities, are investigated and that all those responsible are brought to justice.

On the evening of January 6, Polad Aslanov, an imprisoned director of the “xeberman.com” website, went on a hunger strike. The convicted journalist demands a reconsideration of his case and protests against the delay in the consideration of his complaint by the Supreme Court (SC) of Azerbaijan.

Analysts from Baku believe that the deployment of the Collective Security Treaty Organization troops to Kazakhstan will aggravate the political crisis in the country and strengthen the anti-Russian sentiments and the desire of society to withdraw from the CIS institutions.

The Armenian military forces will ensure the protection of facilities of strategic importance, the Ministry of Defence of Armenia reports.

The prosecution has demanded from the court to sentence Eldar Gasanov, a former Azerbaijani Public Prosecutor General and Ambassador to Serbia, to 11 years in prison, as well as to confiscate his property.

Mass protests such as those underway in Kazakhstan are possible in Azerbaijan if the authorities fail with democratic reforms, oppositionists believe. Mass actions in Azerbaijan have been ruled out due to people's high trust in the president, a member of the ruling party is sure.

Giorgi Kalandadze, the former head of the Joint Staff of the Georgian Armed Forces who was detained in late December in Germany at the request of the Georgian authorities, has been set free.

The federal benefit allocated because of the coronavirus pandemic to the Chechen, Djokhar Tsarnaev, convicted for committing terror act at the Boston Marathon, will be transferred by a court decision to the terror act victims.