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The statement of President of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov about Boris Berezovsky's involvement in the murder of Natalia Estemirova, an employee of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" caused bewilderment in Natalia's friends and colleagues.

The Investigatory Department for St Petersburg of the ICPO has initiated a criminal case under the article of "murder of two and more persons" in connection with disappearance in this city of four natives of Ingushetia, relatives of the widow of Maksharip Aushev, a human rights activist, who was shot dead last October.

More than 50,000 residents of the capital of Dagestan remain without heat and water for the fifth day already. Electricity is also cut off all the time. The authorities and municipal services are unable to remedy the situation, and residents have started their protest action.

The reason of the armed incident in one of military units of Azerbaijan, where six servicemen were killed and two more wounded, is in impunity for hazing and non-manual relation in the army. This was stated by retired colonel-lieutenant and former employee of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Uzeir Dzhafarov.

Certain details of murder of Arthur and Yusuf Khazhaliev committed on January 28 in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) have become known. The Investigatory Division for the city of Nalchik of the Investigatory Department for the KBR of the ICPO (Investigatory Committee under the Prosecutor's Office) of the Russian Federation has initiated a criminal case under the articles of "murder" and " illegal circulation of firearms".

On February 12, Ella Kesaeva, head of the All-Russian Public Organization "Voice of Beslan", and Irina Khalai, head of the Volgodonsk public organization of terror victims, will go to Spain to take part in the congress of terror victims. Ms Kesaeva is going to suggest there to make the Movement "For Status of Terror Victims" international.

Activist of the opposition Mkrtich Sapeyan was welcomed by his relatives and colleagues, including former political prisoners, when he was released from the prison hospital after expiry of his term.

The public organization "Adyge Khasse" has sent a letter to President of Adygea Aslan Tkhakushinov in connection with the incident, when militia stopped the national dance Adyge Dzhegu in the central square of Maikop on the New Year night. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was informed about it by Arambi Khapai, leader of the organization.

Today the Supreme Court of Dagestan rejected the petition lodged by candidates for Mayor of Derbent Elkhan Kazimov, Salikh Ramazanov and voter Shakhban Gapizov to appoint the election on March 14, 2010.

Southern Caucasus sees a deficit of economic development. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has learnt about it from Wolfgang Ion, head of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (Germany) for Southern Caucasus, which was one of the organizers of the seminar "New Economic Thinking", held in Armenia.

Today, at the session of the Supreme Court of Kabardino-Balkaria on the criminal case about the attack on Nalchik on October 13, 2005, defendant Ahmed Khupsergenov felt bad.

The situation in Azerbaijan with the freedom of the press continues to worsen; the country sees the practice of persecuting journalists by law enforcement bodies on fabricated criminal charges. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports from Strasbourg that it was stated on January 27 by Miklos Harasti, special representative of the OSCE for the freedom of mass media at a press conference in the headquarters of the Council of Europe (СЕ).

In Georgia, the son of the former President Zviad Gamsakhurdia - Tsotne, who is already in custody accused of a murder attempt, saw new charges of espionage in favour of Russia and participation in an anti-governmental plot.

As reported by Adam Malsagov, acting Minister of Economy of Ingushetia, about 400 Ingush families want to move for employment to the Sverdlovsk Region.

Operative agents came to search apartments of Alexei Dymovskiy's common law wife and his stepbrother.

If Chechnya copes with turning into a mounting skiing resort, as President Ramzan Kadyrov dreams, then, in the opinion of western experts, "it will be one of the most radical breakthroughs in global tourism."

On January 27, Yuri Trutnev, head of the Russian Ministry for Protection of the Environment and Natural Resources (known as "MinPrirody"), reported to his Premier Vladimir Putin that all the ecological issues, which had been raised in connection with construction of future objects of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games, were settled.

The number of migrant present in the territory of Chechnya grew last year by three thousand persons and now makes 8682 persons. The data was presented by the Department for Chechnya of the Federal Migration Service (FMS) of Russia. Most of the migrants originate from CIS countries.

In Georgia, another monument to the casualties of World War II was dismantled. This was reported by the oppositional party "Movement for Fair Georgia" headed by ex-prime minister Zurab Nogaideli.

Today, a group of the non-parliamentary opposition of Georgia held a march in the Isani-Samgor District of Tbilisi with a demand to release the country's political prisoners.