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The formation in Chechnya of military units subordinated to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) indicates that Ramzan Kadyrov has acquired the status of a federal-level politician, Alexei Malashenko, a political analyst, believes.

The Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don has found Medjid Aliev, a resident of Dagestan, guilty of helping the activities of the "Islamic State" (IS)* and sentenced him to 16 years in a high security colony.

Magomed Magomedov, the mayor of the city of Kizilyurt, has informed about the death of his nephew in the special operation in Ukraine. He also said about his son's participation in the special operation.

Relatives of Armenian prisoners of war held a protest rally in front of the Russian consulate in Gyumri calling for help in the return of their relatives from Azerbaijani captivity.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will prepare a report on threats to the lives and safety of journalists and human rights defenders in Azerbaijan.

Adyg activist Kase Kik, who left Russia, plans to file a complaint to the law enforcement bodies about torture. A case on abuse of authority by law enforcers can be instituted also not at a request of the victim, if there are other sources of information about the crime, advocate Timofei Shirokov emphasizes.

Akhmed Tamazaev and Chingiz Mirzoev perished in Ukraine, and the Orders of Courage were handed over to their parents, the administration of the Khasavyurt District reported.

Ramzan Kadyrov announced that he was awarded the Order of Merit for Dentistry. Users of the “VKontakte” social media outlet wonder what kind of merits helped the leader of Chechnya to receive the award.

The court has left Azerbaijani blogger, Rashad Ramazanov, in custody by rejecting the motion to transfer him to house arrest, Elchin Sadygov, an advocate, has informed. Rashad's wife has added that at his examination at the mental clinic, doctors diagnosed him with a neurological disorder.

The new battalion "West-Akhmat" has been already staffed by residents of Chechnya. It will subordinate to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), Ramzan Kadyrov has announced.

The new battalions, the formation of which was announced by the head of Chechnya, will become part of the "Rosgvardiya" (Russian National Guard), experts assert. In their opinion, it was Kadyrov's initiative; and it strengthens the position of his followers in the country's military-defence hierarchy amid the special operation in Ukraine.

The Defence Committee of the Russian State Duma has offered to recruit school graduates for the army service under contract. Instagram* users have criticized the idea, stating that school graduates are too young for the contract military service.

Abdurakhman Abdurakhmanov, a native of Dagestan, was arrested on the charge of involvement in the “Islamic State” (IS, a terrorist organization, banned in Russia by the court, – note of the “Caucasian Knot”). The suspect repeatedly made money transfers to IS members, the Russian FSB reports.

The number of publications that decided to boycott Nikol Pashinyan’s online press conference has grown to 54. Media representatives called on the chair of the Armenian government to return to the pre-pandemic format of press conferences to allow journalists asking questions in person.

In Nalchik, a court sentenced Zaurbek Zhambekov to a two-year suspended sentence for discrediting the Russian Armed Forces and involving a child in a crime. Zaurbek Zhambekov was accused of forcing his daughter to tear away the letter Z from a car. The defendant pointed out that the sign Z is not an official state symbol.

Azerbaijani human rights defender and journalist Elchin Mamed went on a hunger strike ahead of the consideration of his applications for conditional early relief (CER). He does not believe in the fairness of the court and wrote appeals to renounce Azerbaijani citizenship and grant him political asylum in the EU countries.

A court in Novocherkassk, Rostov Region, has fined a local resident for his comment in a social media criticizing the Z symbol and the people who use it. The human rights project "OVD-Info"* has reported about this on its Telegram channel.

Ilham Salmanov, a police sergeant, was hospitalized after a mine explosion in the village of Ashagy Seidakhmedli, Fizuli District. His state of health is assessed as satisfactory.

Rashad Aliev, a resident of the Azerbaijani city of Jalilabad, was sentenced to 15 days of arrest for disobeying the police's demands.

Four military battalions "with an impressive number of personnel" will be formed in Chechnya, which will include "exclusively Chechen guys," Ramzan Kadyrov has stated.