North Ossetian authorities deny reports of preventive restrictions in Chermen

The head of the village of Chermen did not ask the authorities of North Ossetia to impose restrictions on the entry of Ingush residents into the Prigorodny district; publications about this are fake, the republican TsUR stated. Against the backdrop of the incidents, Putin's plenipotentiary discussed with the head of Ingushetia "strengthening interethnic harmony."

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" wrote, on August 25, Sergei Menyailo instructed law enforcement agencies to close entry into the republic in the event of domestic conflicts that could escalate into larger-scale and interethnic ones. This order was preceded by two brawls that occurred on the night of August 25 on the border of the two republics. Posts about the incidents caused controversy on social networks: Ossetian users supported Menyailo's order to close entry into the republic from Ingushetia, while Ingush users reminded that the borders between the regions have not been officially defined.

Today, the authorities of North Ossetia issued a refutation of information that, according to them, was spread among residents of the republic in instant messengers. The publications claimed that the head of the village of Chermen, Bela Agkatseva, asked to “introduce preventive restrictive measures in the territory of the Prigorodny District,” citing tensions provoked by residents of the neighboring republic.

The messages were accompanied by a photo of an alleged official letter from Agkatseva addressed to Sergei Menyailo. The text mentions residents of Ingushetia and the threat of “destabilization of the socio-political situation in the North Caucasus,” while the request to impose restrictions, in particular, to ban the sale of alcoholic beverages and introduce a curfew, is due to the goal of “preventing a repeat of the tragic events of 1992.” The regional control center reported that the letter was fake.

According to the authorities, Bela Agkatseva herself denied the widespread rumor, stating that she did not send any letters to Menyailo. “The letter itself presented in the fake was composed with gross violations of office work, and the number indicated in it does not correspond to reality,” the department’s publication says.

The authorities of North Ossetia called on residents “not to succumb to provocations” and to trust only official sources of information. According to officials, those spreading false reports are interested in “artificially whipping up panic,” “escalating tensions,” and “destabilizing the situation.”

On the evening of August 25, Sergei Menyailo himself blamed “instigators” for the conflict that had arisen. “The instigators attempted to involve hotheads from both the neighboring republic and ours in inciting the situation. And it was precisely to this kind of situation that my words about possible entry restrictions applied,” he wrote on the official Telegram channel.

Against the backdrop of the incidents, the Presidential Plenipotentiary Representative in the North Caucasus Federal District Yuri Chaika visited Ingushetia on August 25 and met with the head of the republic, Makhmud-Ali Kalimatov. The official statement from the head of the region does not mention the conflict incidents, but it is noted that the subject of discussion was, among other things, “ensuring public safety and strengthening interethnic harmony.”

This is the first official visit of the Plenipotentiary Representative to Ingushetia since the end of May, Fortanga notes.

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