Employees of Ingush Red Cross tell about search

After breaking the door to the office of Musa Malsagov, the arrested head of the Ingush Red Cross, law enforcers seized two logbooks and greeting cards, Mr Malsagov's colleagues have informed.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that today law enforcers came to make a search of the Ingush branch of the Red Cross. According to activists, during the search, they broke down the door and seized two telephones and a seal from the next-door office of the World Ingush Congress, the lawyer, Magomed Bekov, has stated. Musa Malsagov, the head of the Ingush Red Cross, had been arrested within the case of using violence against policemen at a rally in Magas.

The search was a surprise for the Ingush Red Cross employees, said Marem Tochieva, the coordinator of one of the organization's programmes.

The activities of the Ingush branch of the Red Cross are restricted by the decision of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) of Ingushetia, which defined the organization to be a "foreign agent", Ms Tochieva has explained, associating the MoJ's decision with the participation of Musa Malsagov, the head of the Red Cross branch, in protest actions.

According to Marem Tochieva, she had worked with Musa Malsagov in the Red Cross for more than 25 years. "In the republic's difficult times, he carried out enormous work with refugees and forced migrants ... His excellent work in this post was denoted by Ingush authorities," she has added.