News

The police detained an employee of the Chechen representative office in the Northwestern Federal District within an investigation into a drug purchase case.

Yevgeny Grushovets, an advocate of former Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, complained that he flew to Tbilisi, but Georgian border guards sent him back to Ukraine without explaining any reasons for their actions.

In Dagestan, young women's rights are systematically violated. Girls can be subjected to pressure in families; they are often forced into marriage, but some of them manage to defend their opinions, Dagestani girls told the "Novaya Gazeta" newspaper.

Shiite theologians are being persecuted in Azerbaijan because of the mistakenly formed stereotype about their pro-Iranian viewpoints, the analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

Lekso Rapava, a former police boss in the town of Khobi, has announced a hunger strike in protest against his detention, said Tengiz Gunava, an office employee of the Georgian Ombudsperson. Rapava's advocate and his family treat his detention as revenge of the "Georgian Dream" Party for his cooperation with the opposition.

19 years after the tragedy at the "Dubrovka" Theatre Centre, authorities still fail to reveal the reason of deaths, many of the victims have diseases of toxic origin, victims' relatives said on the anniversary of the storming.

The man accused of killing Zelimkhan Khangoshvili is Vadim Krasikov, an agent of Russian special services, who had been a member of Vladimir Putin's inner circle, a Krasikov's relative stated on October 26, during his second testimony at a Berlin court. He explained that earlier he had not identified Krasikov out of fear.

Fourteen Georgian NGOs have called on the authorities to resolve the issue of the hospitalization of Mikheil (Mikhail) Saakashvili, who has been on a hunger strike for the 26th day in Rustavi Prison. Saakashvili himself has categorically refused to be transferred to the prison hospital located in Gldani.

Salman Mukaev, a native of Grozny, was forced to flee Chechnya after being tortured. Now, he is in Armenia; in Russia, he has been declared wanted and fears that he could be extradited.

A woman from Karachay-Cherkessia moved to Syria in 2012 and joined militants, investigators suggested. The woman was put on the international wanted list.

Late in the evening, Shiite theologian Akhliman Rustamov, detained on October 25, was released without charge after being interrogated by the State Security Service of Azerbaijan.

Abdullakh Kadyrov, a son of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, became the winner of the contest for reading the Koran in a kindergarten, which was the first for him, the leader of the region announced.

In her video appeal to Tumso Abdurakhmanov, Rubati Mitsaeva, who lives in Berlin, has supported Ramzan Kadyrov, who permitted her to return to Chechnya, and joined in criticizing the blogger. Instagram users consider the appeal of the Akhmed Zakaev’s former comrade-in-arms to be emotional and insufficiently reasoned.

Khusein Bakarov, a Chechen law enforcer, who was detained in August in Khasavyurt, has been released under house arrest until November 3. He will stay at his home in Gudermes.

Opponents of Mikhail Saakashvili gathered in front of the Rustavi Prison and demanded severe punishment for the third president of Georgia and apologies from him.

The visit of the US Secretary of Defence and the signing of a memorandum on strengthening Georgia's defence potentials have indicated NATO's interest in Georgia; however, no concrete steps are being taken in this direction (Georgia's accession to the NATO), since there is no political consensus among NATO members on this issue, the analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

Ramzan Kadyrov finds it necessary to encourage only the law enforcers' elite close to him; therefore only commanders received expensive cars as gifts for maroon berets, the human rights defenders interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have noted.

Akhliman Rustamov, a Shiite theologian, has been detained in Azerbaijan; a search was conducted in his house, and religious literature was seized. Azeri authorities are using the tension in relations with Iran to put pressure on Shiites, the activists interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

Sharip Delimkhanov, the head of the Chechen branch of the "Rosgvardiya" (Russian National Guard), has awarded medals and certificates of honour to local military servicemen and "Rosgvardiya" fighters, who had received the right to wear maroon berets after being accused of dishonestly passing the tests thereto in the Stavropol Territory.

Russia has nominated the film "Unclenching the Fists" filmed in North Ossetia by film director Kira Kovalenko, for the "Oscar" Award