All news

According to the words of the local branch chairman of the "Memorial" Vladimir Shnidtke, about 14:00 two men rushed into the society's quarters, one of them wearing a mask; they call themselves representatives of the society for Colonel Budanov's protection and announced that they needed a central computer with information.

More than fifty participants gathered for a round-table discussion "Public Organizations in Krasnodar region: Persecution Continues", which took place in Krasnodar; they discussed a situation arisen around the Novorossiysk Fund "School of Peace".

Chechen people were abducted by officers of Russian power structures; their whereabouts and further fate has not been ascertained yet.

In her last interview to the Rolling Stone magazine the Hollywood star said it was in her nearest plans to visit refugee camps on the border with Chechnya and acquaint herself with situation in the Northern Caucasus.

According to information of local residents, on August 11, 2003 Russian military men shoot down a car with 4 people in it in the village of Aldi (Zavodskoy District of Grozny).

As the Federation Council member, the Chechen Administration representative in the Federation Council Akhmar Zavgayev reported, an enlarged session of the Chechen regional branch of the United Russia Party was held in Gudermes on Thursday.

According to the words of the prime-minister, "the US, being one of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen, can do a lot for peaceful conflict settlement within the framework of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity".

A hearing of the case on the murder of Armenian Public Television and Radio Company Chairman Tigran Naglalian was continued under the chairmanship of Judge Saro Aramian in the court of first instance of the Kentron and Nork-Marash Communes of Erevan on Wednesday.

80 delegates from Jordan, Syria, Israel, Turkey, the US, and other countries where the Adygeis compactly live, as well as 200 invited guests are expected to be its participants.

The action resulted in a decision to found an association that would be a coordinating body for development and promotion of public initiatives of its participants.

"All people who are now living in these tent camps in Ingushetia will be provided with housing," Chechen Acting President Anatoly Popov said. "At the beginning of the year about 20 000 refuges lived in the Ingush tent camps, at the present time only 9 500."

An armored personnel carrier hit a high-capacity landmine that had been planted by gunmen on a road.

On August 13 human rights advocacy NGOs expressed concern regarding the Tbilisi District Court decision that obliged the investigative TV program 60 Minutes to pay 1 million lari (USD 450 000) to Georgian Railway Department Chairman Akaki Chkheidze.

Separatists clothed in masks fired a building of the village administration from the automatic and escaped from the scene of the crime.

On July 27, 2003 withindoors of the Khostinsky Regional Interior Department Alexander Shvets and Tomaz Tsatsoria were beaten by militiamen with the purpose of giving false evidence.

A political scientist Aslan Khalidi noted in his report "Foreign Compatriots' Resources To Obtain Information About Azerbaijan" that there was a need of working out a mechanism of providing foreign compatriots with information about their historical native land.

Director of the Moscow Bureau on Human Rights Alexander Brod and Director of the Center of International Cooperation Ashot Airapetian prepared a writ on honor, dignity and business reputation protection to the Publishing House "Arguments and Facts", to the newspaper of the same name, and personally to the journalist Ekaterina Bichkova.

"Now the Commission is discussing the possibility to conduct an observation of the elections in Chechnya under the aegis of the Commission and by human rights activists' strength. the MHG, from its part, finds this initiative to be of vital importance," reads the letter.

Representatives of various public organizations, including youth movements, will appear as observers.

Meeting participants discussed a plan of preparation of the annual study and enlightening action "Human Rights - Every Day", which is held by the Federal Commissioner's staff at schools and institutes of higher education of Moscow in the first half of September.