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In 2011, political repressions intensified in Azerbaijan, and the sharpest jump in the number of political prisoners over the last decade has been marked. This was reported by Leila Yunus, Director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy (IPD), at the press conference dedicated to the International Human Rights Day celebrated on December 10. At the same time, the Azerbaijani authorities deny existence of political prisoners in the country.

In Ingushetia, in the morning of December 2, in the course of the inspection of passport regime in the dormitory of the Islamic Institute conducted by officers of unidentified power agency, student Magomed Alikhanovich Mutsolgov, a resident of the village of Surkhakhi, was subjected to beatings and threats. This was reported by human rights defenders.

In the course of today's court session on the case of Chechen natives Apti and Aishat Magmadov, the Moscow Regional Court listened to testimony of Egle Kusaite. Earlier, the defence has filed a motion about announcement of that testimony.

Soslan Kokoev, the detained founder of the website Uasamonga.ru, the supporter of Djambolat Tedeev, the non-registered candidate for the presidential election in South Ossetia, was transferred to the SIZO (pre-trial prison) of Vladikavkaz. Information about the state of his health is still unavailable.

On December 10, twenty-two juvenile prisoners of the Belorechenskaya juvenile correctional colony of the Krasnodar Territory cut their hands with razor blades. This was reported today by the official representative of the UFSIN (Department of the Russian Federal Correction Service) of the Krasnodar Territory.

Supporters of ex-presidential candidate of South Ossetia Alla Djioeva in Tskhinvali removed the benches and casks they used to make a fire during their two-week actions of protest from the square.

Four persons detained at a meeting against forging the election of State Duma in Rostov-on-Don were sentenced by the magistrate's court to two, five and ten days of administrative arrest, 7 or 8 more were fined, coordinator of "Left Front" in Rostov region Vladislav Ryasantsev told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Four policemen in Orenburg were detained for suspicion of involvement in the death of native of Armenia Armen Sargsyan in the Directorate of Orenburg Department of the Ministry of interior Affairs.

The incumbent President of South Ossetia Eduard Kokoity, who declared tonight his forthcoming resignation, has appointed two judges of the Constitutional Court, thus starting to form it.

Today, at the public meeting in Tskhinvali, Eduard Kokoity announced his resignation as President of South Ossetia and handed over presidential powers to Vadim Brovtsev, Prime Minister, who was appointed the acting head of the republic.

Today, a protest rally against the results of the elections to the Russian State Duma was held in Moscow.

In Dagestan, participants of the protest rally against the results of the elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation conducted on December 4 report on detention of protesters, including members of the "Yabloko" Party.

Today, opposite the railway station in Sochi, a rally of people discontented with the results of the elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation was held. During the protest action, the human rights defender Sergey Basmanov, Director of the organization "Defence of Citizens' Rights and Interests", was detained.

In Volgograd, the action of citizens, who consider the outcomes of the elections to the State Duma held on December 4 to be falsified, passed without incidents. Policemen and Cossack patrols were on duty around the perimeter of the square at a large distance. No state officials came out to meet the protesters.

Today, in Yerevan, in front of the Embassy of the Russian Federation, a protest action was held. The protesters urged the Russian authorities to release opposition members detained during the protest actions after the elections to the State Duma.

In Makhachkala, law enforcement agents have just detained Idris Yusupov, a local resident, participation in a rally against kidnapping and arbitrariness of power agents, which was held in the capital of Dagestan on November 25. Idris Yusupov himself denied his participation in the rally.

The Chechen regional public organization "Mothers' Alert", which has earlier declared its participation in the rally "For Fair Elections" on December 10 in Moscow, was unable to participate in the protest action due to lack of money to purchase tickets to Moscow, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told by Zainab Mezhidova, the head of the organization.

Alla Djioeva, ex-candidate for the presidency in South Ossetia, intends to nominate herself for the election on March 25; she is ready to cooperate with Vadim Brovtsev, and she intends to seek the release of political prisoners. This was reported by Alla Djioeva to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The radical methods used by militants are supported by 12 percent of pupils and students of Dagestan, regarding them as the key to solving the existing local problems. These are the results of the social opinion poll conducted in November by the monitoring group for the youth environment of the Republic of Dagestan. Experts believe that many people in Dagestan view the "Forest Jamaats" as the only alternative to the ruling corrupt power and treat the specialized religious education as a barrier to radicalization.

An armed attack was committed in Nazran, Ingushetia, on Sofa Esmurzieva, Deputy Minister of Public Health; with a gunshot wound in her leg she was taken to hospital in Vladikavkaz.