News

The Armenian and Azerbaijani sides transferred the information about prisoners of war to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

On December 3, in Vienna, members of the Chechen Diaspora and human rights defenders held an action to protest against the mass deportation of ethnic Chechens to Russia. By pronouncing such decisions, the Austrian authorities violate the Convention on Human Rights, suggests Svetlana Gannushkina, the chair of the NGO "Civic Assistance Committee".

The start of the consideration by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) of complaints lodged by the men sentenced in a case on an attack on Nalchik increases their chances not only for compensation, but also for commutation of their sentences, advocates note. Rasul Kudaev, sentenced to life imprisonment, suffers from serious diseases, but does not receive sufficient medical care, his mother complains.

The torture case of Shamil Atabiev, a resident of the Karachay-Cherkessian Republic (KChR), by law enforcers is at the initial stage, his advocate has stated. The defence insists on a repeated medical examination in order to re-qualify the case on abuse of power into a heavier charge.

Wearing a niqab is voluntary, and no one, according to Islam, has the right to impose or prohibit it, Musa Lomaev, a blogger, has noted. The girls, deciding to make use of the authorities' demand to wear masks during the pandemic, have put on niqabs instead of medical masks, the blogger, Tumso Abdurakhmanov, has suggested.

It is undesirable for residents of Chechnya over 65 years old to come to mosques for collective Friday namaz (prayer) due to the threat of coronavirus spread, the republic's Mufti, Salakh Mezhiev, has declared.

The demining of the territories after the fighting in Karabakh may take a year, Alexander Perendjiev, a political analyst, has suggested. In his turn, Vasily Dandykin believes that Russian peacemakers, due to their experience, will cope with demining in a few months.

Law enforcers have posted on the Instagram a video with the repentance of two residents of Bachi-Yurt, who had spread their comic video with the participation of policemen in social networks. The authors' misconduct is not a crime; this case hardly needed any publicity, users have commented.

Azerbaijani journalist, Afghan Sadygov, has been on hunger strike at the SIZO (pre-trial prison) for 30 days. A court in Baku has scheduled the consideration of a motion for his transfer to house arrest for December 4.

Criticism of women for niqabs in Chechnya is especially inappropriate during the pandemic, when it is prescribed to wear face-covering masks, Instagram users have pointed out. Others found it odd that the spiritual leader of the region spoke out against a Muslim tradition.

About 300 Russian citizens stay in Azerbaijan and await to be sent home, while about 400 citizens of Azerbaijan stay in Dagestan, the authorities of the republic report.

The Mufti of Chechnya required from men over 65 not to attend Friday prayers and urged residents of the republic to limit attendance at memorial gatherings.

The authorities of Chechnya will impose high fines for residents and entrepreneurs who neglect the prevention of the coronavirus infection spread, announces Magomed Daudov, the chairman of the Chechen parliament.

In the period from September 27 to November 9, 2783 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed in the battles in the Karabakh conflict zone, and 1245 others undergo medical treatment, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Azerbaijan reports.

The anti-epidemiological restrictions adopted by the Georgian authorities are discriminatory for non-Orthodox organizations, 11 religious communities have stated. Believers asked not to violate the freedom of religion and not to create obstacles to charitable services.

During the past 24 hours, Russian militaries defused about 100 ammunition units in Stepanakert, and cleared a school of explosives, after which it resumed classes.

The signing of the agreement, according to which the Kashatag (Lachin) District of Nagorno-Karabakh passes over to Azerbaijan, was quite a surprise for local residents. After the mass exodus, forced migrants found refuge with their relatives. They have admitted that the resettlement problem was mostly on their shoulders.

It is difficult and expensive to travel to Yessentuki, where the case of the Ingush activists accused of creating an extremist community is being considered; and because of the quarantine introduced because of the epidemic, a limited number of people are let into the courtroom, defendants' relatives have complained.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Nagorno-Karabakh has added 34 names to the list of soldiers, who perished during the conflict escalation, bring the total number thereof up to 1746.

The vacations granted to Armenian regular soldiers, who had fought in Nagorno-Karabakh, will reduce tensions in the army, while their parents' protests were emotional and will not affect the domestic political situation, Armenian human rights defenders and political analysts believe.