Experts of UN HRC ask Russian official about special operations in Northern Caucasus

More than 100 questions were asked to Russian representatives at the session of the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) in Geneva. The number of questions raised by experts also included those related to special operations in Northern Caucasus and investigations into resonant murders.

The session, which considered the seventh periodic report of the Russian Federation on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, was held on March 16-17 at the 113^th session of the UN HRC.

According to Georgy Matyushkin, the Russia's authorized representative to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), the Deputy Minister of Justice, the raised questions were related to "the whole spectrum of human rights and freedoms," including questions about conducting of special operations in Northern Caucasus. The experts have also paid attention to the situation of human rights defenders and journalists and asked questions related to resonant murders and authorities' measures to bring criminals to justice.

In particular, the experts mentioned the murders of politician Boris Nemtsov committed in Moscow on February 27, journalist Anna Politkovskaya and human rights defender Natalia Estemirova, who worked in Northern Caucasus; besides, large blocks of questions were related to freedom of speech, situation of judges and national groups, the TASS reports with reference to Georgy Matyushkin.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.