Abkhaz journalist Khashig has been removed from the Russian register of foreign agents.

The Russian Ministry of Justice has removed Inal Khashig, editor-in-chief of Chegemskaya Pravda, from the register of foreign agents, having been added to the list in March 2025.

As reported by the Caucasian Knot, on March 7, 2025, the Russian Ministry of Justice added Abkhaz journalist and political scientist Inal Khashig to the register of foreign agents. On March 11, 2025, the Union of Journalists of Abkhazia criticized this decision and called on the republic's authorities to protect the editor-in-chief of Chegemskaya Pravda. Inal Khashig himself then announced that he intended to challenge his status.

As of today, the Russian Ministry of Justice no longer considers Abkhaz journalist Inal Khashig a foreign agent. The agency issued an order to remove him from the register.

"Due to the loss of his foreign agent status, I.N. Khashig has been removed from the registry," reads a statement on the Ministry of Justice website. The publication does not specify how exactly the "loss of status" was recorded.

Inal Khashig himself had not commented on the Justice Ministry's decision on his social media page as of 10:33:30 PM Moscow time today.

Abkhaz journalist Nizfa Arshba* commented on the removal of the Chegemskaya Pravda editor from the Russian registry of foreign agents to the Caucasian Knot. She expressed hope that the decision regarding Inal Khashig will not be an isolated incident.

“As an independent Abkhaz journalist, I am pleased that the Russian Ministry of Justice has finally acknowledged its mistake (...). I sincerely hope that the Russian Ministry of Justice and the office of Mr. [First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Sergei] Kiriyenko will officially acknowledge that the other decisions [to add Abkhaz journalists to the register of foreign agents] were also erroneous, as was the decision to add Abkhaz independent journalist Inal Khashig to the register,” she told a “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.

Arshba* noted that Inal Khashig, as well as herself and Nuzhnaya Gazeta editor Izida Chania*, “did not make any particular efforts” to be included or removed from the register. Nevertheless, all three filed lawsuits after being added to the list.

“We all sued the Russian Ministry of Justice, first in the first instance, then on appeal. Now the case is in the second appellate instance, essentially unanswered. So, it seems the ministry is right,” the journalist noted.

* added to the Russian register of foreign agents

** Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) is banned in Russia.