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On January 16, 2007, before the start of a court session in Pyatigorsk (Stavropol Territory), a sentry beat Anton Stepanenko's advocate and Andrei Grudin, the second defendant in the case.

On January 17, the Supreme Court of Russia has ruled to send the case of Sergey Lapin (radio call sign "Cadet"), criminal search senior lieutenant of the Interior Department of the city of Nizhnevartovsk, who was convicted for torturing Zelimkhan Murdalov, a resident of Grozny, capital of Chechnya, to the first instance court for a new consideration.

The Appellate Court of Azerbaijan has changed the restriction measure (arrest) in relation to Bakhtiyar Gadzhiev, creator of the Internet web-site susmayaq.biz.

Today, the North Caucasian Regional Military Court has continued the proceedings of the case of interior troops officers Evgeniy Khudyakov and Sergey Arakcheev, accused of murdering Chechnya residents.

The trend of recent years - hampering by the state of enforcement of the decisions of the European Court in the territory of the Russian Federation - may result in suspension of the Council of Europe membership.

The Krasnodar Territory Court has passed a verdict on the criminal case in relation to four district militia officers and one their civil acquaintance, accused of murdering an Adygea resident.

Officers Evgeniy Khudyakov and Sergey Arakcheev, accused of murdering peaceful residents of Chechnya, refuse to admit their guilt.

On January 15, the premises of the Federation for Peace and Accord have become the venue of the roundtable with participation of human rights defenders from such public organizations like the Committee for Civil Rights, "Social Partnership" Foundation, "Public Verdict," as well as representatives of state institutions for defence of human rights and specialists in the area of fighting tortures, cruel and humiliating treatment and punishment.

On January 16, the European Court for Human Rights will notify about 27 court judgments made and will announce decisions on 24 cases. One of them refers applicants from Chechnya - Arbi Chitaev and his brother Adam, born in 1964 and 1967, respectively.

January 15 is the deadline for the amnesty declared last July by the National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC) of Russia to participants of armed formations in North Caucasus.

Today, an action in memory of Anna Politkovskaya, observer of the "Novaya Gazeta" newspaper, is held in Paris.

On January 13, Bakhtiyar Gadzhiev, creator of the web-site www.susmayaq.biz, was detained in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.

The Antiterrorist Commission of Kabardino-Balkaria has again addressed the members of illegal armed formations who remain under search with an appeal to take advantage of the several days left till the end of the amnesty, and to lay down arms.

Liudmila Alekseeva, a human rights activist for over 30 years, one of the most influential and respected human rights defenders of the country, for a long time was among the most active members of the Board for Human Rights under the President.

Rene Van der Linden, Chairman of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), has declared that PACE is ready to help Russia in investigating the murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya, if "the investigation will come to a deadlock.

The International Committee for Defence of Journalists (ICDJ) has expressed a regret that judicial authorities of Azerbaijan had decided to extend by two more months the custody term for the two journalists accused of insulting Prophet Mohammed.

On January 16, the Institute for Peace and Democracy in Azerbaijan will make public its list of judges who are passing politically-motivated verdicts. In the opinion of the organization, analysis of the legislative base and operation of the judicial system allows to conclude on the absence of an independent judiciary in Azerbaijan.

Ruslan Demilkhanov, 30, resident of the Starye Atagi village of the Groznenskiy Rural District of the Chechen Republic, is trying to bring Vadim Rechkalov, journalist of the "Moskovskiy Komsomolets" ("MK") newspaper, to responsibility.

The Amnesty International organization intends to attract attention of international community to the facts of attacks on journalists in Azerbaijan.

The international "Human Rights Watch" organization has accused Azerbaijani authorities of voluntary arrests and beating of opposition activists and of using tortures against them.