Week in the Caucasus: review of main events on January 13-19

Bomb explosion at entertainment complex in Makhachkala and a special operation where seven suspected militants were killed; information appearing on the web about the death of Doku Umarov, the leader of North-Caucasian militants; election of jurors for Anna Politkovskaya's murder case and searches at lawyer Musaev's before the court session, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of January 13-19, 2014, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Dagestan: bomb explosion at entertainment complex and special operation in Makhachkala killing seven suspected militants

On January 17 in Makhachkala, the building of the entertainment complex "Golden Empire" was shelled; as a result of a shot from a grenade launcher nobody was hurt; but later, a bomb in a car parked nearby was triggered. According to the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF), the explosion injured 16 people.

On the same day in the village of Semender near Makhachkala power agents blocked a private house. A woman and three children were released from the house; then, seven persons were killed. Two of them were identified as Makhmud Aliev, who was appointed on January 15 to the post of Amir of Makhachkala militants, and Zaira Alieva, who had been trained to be a suicide bomber. Two more militants were put on the wanted list as suspects of committing two explosions in Makhachkala stores on October 30, 2013.

Information about death of Doku Umarov, leader of North-Caucasian militants, posted on the Internet

On January 16, the service YouTube posted an audio record, stating that Doku Umarov, the leader of North-Caucasian militants, had been killed. Power bodies in Chechnya have indirect proves of Umarov's death, as source from these bodies told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. According to his version, one hundred percent confidence in the death of Umarov, who called in July 2013 on the militants to use all possible methods to disrupt the Olympic Games in Sochi, will be only when his body is found.

Rostov Region: conviction passed on nationalism-based murder

On January 17, the North-Caucasian District Military Court sentenced six residents of Rostov-on-Don, accused of murdering May 6, 2012, a 19-year-old ethnic Turk. Investigators have concluded that the national hatred was the motive. As a result of the trial, two defendants were sentenced to 19 and 11 years and two months in a high security colony. One more criminal was sentenced to 1 year and 7 months in a settlement-colony, and three others – to correctional labour for 7 to 18 months.

Armenia: contract signed on sale of 20% stake of CJSC "ArmRosGazprom" and protests against new pension system

On January 16, the Armenian government approved the signing of the contract of sale to the Open Joint-Stock Company (OJSC) "Gazprom" of 20% stake of the Closed Joint-Stock Company (CJSC) "ArmRosGazprom" on account of the debt for Russian gas to Armenia, the agreement on which was signed on December 2, 2013 during Vladimir Putin's visit to Yerevan; and which was opposed by the Armenian opposition. On the same day, the sale contract was signed in Moscow; and the Russian "Gazprom" became the full owner of the Armenian gas supplier, renaming it into "Gazprom Armenia".

During the last week, two actions were held in Yerevan by opponents of the new pension system, which was launched in the country since January 1. On January 16, activists staged a motor rally to inform citizens about the possible risks of the new pension system. On January 18, the members of the civil initiative "DEM.AM" organized a rally, which, according to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, attracted about 10,000 people. The demonstrators expressed their readiness to hold strikes, if the government fails to cancel the accumulative pension system.

Jury selection for Politkovskaya's murder case in Moscow and preceding search of Musaev's house

On January 14, the Moscow City Court completed the formation of the staff of jury for the trial of the murder case of the observer of the "Novaya Gazeta" Anna Politkovskaya.

One day before, the house of Murad Musaev, a lawyer from the Bar "Musaev and Partners", a native of Chechnya, who represents the interests of the defendants in the above trial, was searched within the criminal case of bribing the witnesses in the murder case of Yuri Budanov. In the opinion of the lawyer Tatiana Okushko, Musaev's colleague, the negative information background is deliberately created around Murad Musaev to put pressure on him and discredit in the eyes of the jurors at the trials, where he is involved, in particular, on the murder case of Anna Politkovskaya.