News

There were no doubts that the sentence on the Ingush activists' case would be politically motivated, but everyone hoped for a softer punishment than the prosecution demanded, the advocates have stated. The convicts' relatives have lost faith in a fair trial.

Salekh Rustamov, an Azerbaijani activist, who has been on his protest hunger strike for 40 days, has agreed to take supportive treatment, Adil Geibulla, a doctor, has informed. According to the doctor, Rustamov's health condition is relatively stable; doctors are doing everything to prevent coma.

The welcoming ceremony at the Grozny Airport of Rubati Mitsaeva, a former associate of Akhmed Zakaev, with the participation of ministers and a Chechen MP has surprised social media users. At the same time, many reacted kindly to Mitsaeva's return to homeland.

The authorities of Chechnya perceive all protests as disloyalty, and therefore, an open expression of dissatisfaction with the increase in rent at the Berkat market is a bold step for which entrepreneurs are threatened with reprisals. This was stated by social media users.

The Russian citizen, whom a witness identified as Vadim Krasikov, an agent of the Russian special services, was sentenced by a Berlin court to life imprisonment in a case on the murder of Zelimkhan Khangoshvili, a former Chechen field commander.

In Baku, the police disrupted a protest action. The protestors demanded to release activist Salekh Rustamov, who has been on hunger strike for the 40th day. More than 20 people are detained.

At an action in Baku, where the participants demanded to release Salekh Rustamov, a hunger-striking activist, from custody, 43 people were detained; nine of them were fined for violating the quarantine regime.

Two residents of Ingushetia intended to blow up the administrative buildings of the department of private security and patrol-and-post service in Sunzha, sources reported.

At their meeting in Brussels, the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia have agreed to create a temporary working group for delimiting the mutual border and unblocking the railway.

The court in the Stavropol Territory has sentenced Akhmed Barakhoev, Musa Malsagov, Malsag Uzhakhov, Ismail Nalgiev, Bagaudin Khautiev, Barakh Chemurziev and Zarifa Sautieva to prison terms from 7.5 to 9 years.

The complaints about torture and unfair trial submitted by residents of Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia were considered by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). Each of the applicants was awarded compensation in the amount of EUR 52,000.

Rubati Mitsaeva, a former associate of Akhmed Zakaev, has arrived in Grozny. At the airport she was met by Magomed Khambiev, a Chechen MP, and Musa Dudaev, the Chechen Minister of Sports.

The Zangezur Corridor, which Baku is seeking to open, should work on the same conditions as the Lachin one, Azerbaijani President, Ilham Aliev, stated in Brussels, at a meeting with the NATO Secretary General. The Armenian Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, has accused the head of Azerbaijan of trying to drive the topic of opening regional communications into a dead end.

A hunger strike is underway in Baku demanding the release of Salekh Rustamov, who has been on his hunger strike for 39 days; and for the last two days, he has been on a dry hunger strike – refuses to drink water and take medicines. Salekh's brother and six other activists are hunger-striking in solidarity with him.

The "International Memorial"* has been long successfully engaged in historical and educational work "without silencing and varnishing"; this work should not stop. This was stated by the human rights defenders who gathered in front of the building of the Russian Supreme Court (SC), where the trial was taking place on the lawsuit lodged by the General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) against the "Memorial"*.

Salekh Rustamov has been on the hunger strike for 39 days, and on the second day of his dry hunger strike, he felt chills, his blood pressure and blood sugar dropped, his advocate and relatives reported. The Azerbaijani authorities did not react to the appeals for pardoning Salekh Rustamov, human rights defender Rufat Safarov said.

In its appeal to the Russian President, the Russian Congress of the Peoples of the Caucasus states that the Ingush activists, the verdict to whom will be pronounced on December 15, have only expressed their civic position, which does not give reason to classify them as extremists.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled that Russia is to pay compensation to human rights defender Oleg Orlov, the “Memorial”*, the newspaper “Novaya Gazeta”, and journalist Vyacheslav Izmailov for persecution on charges of defamation against Ramzan Kadyrov.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found a violation of the right to a fair trial of Abutalip Shakhruev, a resident of Makhachkala, who was sentenced to 11 years of imprisonment based on his testimony obtained under torture. The Strasbourg Court obliged the Russian authorities to pay the resident of Makhachkala the compensation of 52,000 euros.

The police detained a man who unfolded a poster in support of the “Memorial”* in front of the building of the Supreme Court of Russia, which started a hearing on a lawsuit to liquidate the historical and educational society.