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The mission of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) has recommended sending 380 observers to the upcoming early parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan. Rights defenders believe that such a team of observers could contribute to the transparency of the election process.

The complaint of the blogger Eric Kituashvili, known under the nickname "Davidych", about some extortionists, who presented themselves as "Kadyrov people", was invented by him for self-promotion, the blogger, Dmitry Ivanov, has suggested.

Maxim Galkin did not want to give a concert in Chechnya, where people were forced to apologize for their statements about the power, and that fact emphasized his critical attitude to the political atmosphere in Russia. In the course of his concerts in Rostov-on-Don and Krasnodar, Maxim Galkin ridiculed the methods of the Vladimir Putin's ruling and the corruption of officials, in particular, Rauf Arashukov.

The authorities' refusals to extend the status of internally displaced persons (IDPs) led to a disastrous situation because of their housing problems, claimed IDPs from Chechnya, who came to a meeting with the Ingush Minister of National Policy on December 25. Out of 30 people, only the leader of the initiative group was admitted to the meeting with the Minister.

The positions of the Azerbaijani troops in the Karabakh conflict zone and in villages located on the border with Armenia were shelled from machine guns, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Azerbaijan reported.

In Magas, the court has extended for three months the house arrest of Rashid Maisigov, a journalist of the "Fortanga", accused of drug possession.

A resident of Dagestan, Ismail Kurbanov, accused along with his brother Mukhtar Kurbanov of links with militants and keeping explosives, has stated at the court session that he had given his confessions under a threat of torture.

The words of the humorist, Maxim Galkin, who explained his refusal to go on tour in Grozny by the unwillingness to apologize for jokes and his inability to be a courtier, have attracted the attention of YouTube users. Some of them found his statement worthy of respect; others have concluded that Galkin is afraid of Chechen authorities.

A roundtable held in Makhachkala has discussed how the state and businesses can help the women that occurred in difficult situations. The activists of non-commercial organizations (NCOs) interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe that the bill on the prevention of domestic violence has many shortcomings.

The girl, whose high-profile rape case is being investigated in Dagestan, is in a rehabilitation centre. The advocate of the suspect, who has reported torture, demands to punish the person, who had posted the girl's testimonies in social networks. This video was posted with the aim to justify law enforcers, the journalist, Svetlana Anokhina, has suggested.

Some 70 Catholics came to the festive Christmas mass held at the Saint Joseph Church in Nalchik, the capital of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR); about the same number of believers took part in the service in the Catholic Church in Blagoveschensk dwelling settlement. Catholics have never faced any pressure because of their religious beliefs, the parishioners have stated.

Today, Russian Catholics are celebrating Christmas by festive masses that are held in all Catholic churches of Russia, including Southern Russia and the countries of Southern Caucasus.

Polad Aslanov, a journalist has been accused of a murder threat or causing grievous bodily harm. His wife treats accusations as far-fetched; Polad refuses to plead guilty.

In Moscow, the court has obliged Alexander Cherkasov, the chairman of the board of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", to pay 100,000 roubles for the absence in the NGO's publications of a mark that it had been recognized by the authorities as a foreign agent. The total amount of the fines imposed on Alexander Cherkasov reached 400,000 roubles.

A sister of the Aidamirova sisters who disappeared in Chechnya does not believe that the investigating bodies are interested in solving the crime involving law enforcers. Relatives of the Aidamirova sisters expect to get compensation at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) for an ineffective investigation.

On the air of the Chechen TV Channel, Rovzan Yusupova, a resident of Gudermes, apologized for her engagement in the activities related to fortunetelling and witchcraft. Some Instagram users have criticized the public humiliation of the woman.

The positions of the Azerbaijani troops on the border with Armenia and in the Karabakh conflict zone were shelled 22 times within 24 hours, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Azerbaijan reported.

The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, has called Alexander Emelianenko to a fight; two years ago the latter deliberately lost a friendly fight to Kadyrov. Social network users have questioned the honesty of that fight.

The practice of public apologies to Ramzan Kadyrov for careless statements is keeping Maxim Galkin from performing in Chechnya, the comedian said in his interview.

The court has sentenced Musa Pliev, a participant of the March rally in Magas, to 18 months in colony. He will be back at large on January 9, 2020, as the court included the time spent in custody into the sentence.