News

August 14, 2010 14:00

• Volgograd is covered with smoke having acrid odour

  Today from early morning the central Volgograd is covered with smoke having some chemical smell. Employees of the Ministry for Emergencies (MfE) are at a loss to explain the reason of this phenomenon.

August 14, 2010 13:00

• Azerbaijan bans visits to forests

  In the context of aggravated fire-hazardous situation, the Ministry for Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has entered a complete ban on access to the woods of the region.

August 14, 2010 12:00

• Five persons suffer in explosion of dwelling house in Baku

  The explosion happened in the morning on August 13 in an one-storey house in the Nasimin District of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The house took fire.

August 14, 2010 11:00

• EU Council extends observers' mandate in Georgia

  The Council of the European Union has decided to extend the mandate of the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia till September 14, 2011. This was reported by the press service of the EUMM.

August 14, 2010 10:00

• Ukrainian seamen still on strike in Novorossisk

  For the fourth week already the trade ship "REF 607" remains in the sea port of the city of Novorossisk, Krasnodar Territory; the crew refuse to go to sea or ashore in protest against their salary debts. For two weeks the ship owner is inaccessible by communication means. Should there be no news from him within the next few days, the ship may be arrested.

August 13, 2010 18:00

• Woman from Kabardino-Balkaria reports kidnapping of her son

  Madina Lupezheva, a resident of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), has stated that on August 12, 2010, at about 9:30 p.m., her son Lupezhev, Aslan Arsenovich, left his home and never returned. The woman asserts that he was kidnapped.

August 13, 2010 17:00

• Armenia: seven higher schools lose their licenses

  Higher vocational training is completely suspended in seven and partially (in some specialities) in six higher schools of Armenia. The decision was made after the checks by the commission for licensing educational programmes.

August 13, 2010 16:00

• In Georgia, activists of radical Orthodox movement sentenced to 4.5 years in prison

  The Tbilisi City Court has sentenced eight activists of the radical Orthodox movement "Union of Orthodox Parents of Georgia" to 4.5 years of imprisonment each. They were detained after the incident in May 2010 in the TV Company "Kavkasia". The convicts were accused of hooliganism and "interfering with journalist's professional work."

August 13, 2010 15:00

• Teenager kidnapped in Ingushetia was tortured with electricity, rights defenders assert

  As reported by the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", Magomed Mutsolgov, 15, who was kidnapped on August 8 by power agents, was brought to some unknown place, where he was tortured and beaten.

August 13, 2010 14:00

• Karachai-Circassia adopts tourism development concept

  The republic's concept of tourism development till 2015 defines six mountain-recreational zones, which may become tourist centres with highly developed transport infrastructure.

August 13, 2010 13:00

• In Dagestan, fire victims get humanitarian aid

  Foodstuffs and articles of prime necessity arrived from Ingushetia and Khasavyurt to villagers of Anchikh, Akhvakh District of Dagestan, who suffered from fire. Every fire victim received 10,000 roubles.

August 13, 2010 12:00

• Chechen observers doubt of militants' involvement in terror act at Gazprom office in Moscow

  The statement that appeared in separatists' websites that the explosion committed on August 9 near the Gazprom office in Moscow was organized by a group of suicide bombers "Riyadus Salikhiin" (Righteous' Gardens) is causing serious doubts in local observers.

August 13, 2010 11:00

• Ingushetia: one of persons kidnapped by power agents sees charges

  The fate of Zelimkhan Mutsolgov and Ibragim Tochiev, who were kidnapped by power agents on August 5, is now clear. Beaten Mutsolgov was thrown out by unknown persons from a car in the suburb of Nesterovskaya village, and Tochiev was presented charges of participation in the armed underground. The latter's relatives state that he was also strongly beaten.

August 13, 2010 10:00

• In Stavropol Territory, six persons convicted for hooliganism based on national hatred

  The Stepnov District Court of the Stavropol Territory has sentenced six local residents accused of an attempt to expel a Dagestan family from the village, hooligan actions and beating people.

August 13, 2010 09:00

• Residents of Zolskiy District of Kabardino-Balkaria hope to have better water supply from waterfall

  The water supply problems of all the 15 villages of the Zolskiy District, where they feel deficit of potable water, may be solved only after development of Gedmikhsh waterfall. This is the opinion of the head of the administration of Shordakovo village, where residents addressed human rights activists with a complaint on absence of water.

August 12, 2010 16:00

• Residents of Chechnya are unhappy with later start of Ramadan

  Today is the first day of Moslem fast. Traditionally, Chechnya starts the sacred month one day later than the rest of the Moslem world.

August 12, 2010 15:00

• Tkachov offers to move "Azov-City" gambling zone to Anapa

  Alexander Tkachov, Governor of the Krasnodar Territory, has raised an issue on expediency of the present location of the "Azov-City" gambling zone - between the Rostov Region and the Krasnodar Territory.

August 12, 2010 14:00

• Militants take responsibility for explosion near Moscow Gazprom office

  The leader of North-Caucasian militants Dokku Umarov has taken responsibility for the explosion triggered in the garage of a high-ranking official from the Moscow government, located not far from the Gazprom headquarters.

August 12, 2010 12:00

• Moslems of Caucasus start sacred Ramadan

  On August 11, all the Moslems of the world, those in the Caucasus inclusive, started their Ramadan - the sacred month of fasting, prayers and pious deeds.

August 12, 2010 11:00

• Georgia protests against Russia's air defence complex in Abkhazia

  On August 11, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Georgia expressed protest against deployment by Russia of an S-300 air defence complex in the territory of Abkhazia and urged the international community to take resolute steps to stop "militarization of occupied territories of Georgia by the Russian Federation."