Week in the Caucasus: review of main events of March 17-23

Hurricane causing numerous accidents in Southern Russia; scandal in Georgia with inquiry materials on the death of Zurab Zhvaniya posted on the Internet, which do not exclude his murder; completion of inquiry into the case of former Astrakhan Mayor Mikhail Stolyarov, accused of bribe-taking; appointment of parliamentary elections in South Ossetia; sentences in Volgograd in cases of explosion in "Bellagio" Café, and of riots in Ismailly; confirmation by North-Caucasian militants of death of Doku Umarov, leader of "Imarat Kavkaz", – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of March 17-23, 2014, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Hurricane causes numerous emergencies in Southern Russia

On March 17-18, a hurricane with wind gusts reaching 35 meters per second caused various accidents in almost all the regions of Southern Russia. In the Stavropol Territory, strong wind was one of the reasons for the fall of a truck from an overpass onto the railroad track. Electricity outages were caused by the hurricane in seven districts of Chechnya and Ingushetia, and in some districts of Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia, Stavropol Territory and Dagestan. In Vladikavkaz, strong winds damaged several buildings and fell trees.

In Kalmykia, where electricity outages during the hurricane occurred in all the districts of the republic, the roof was blown off a school in one of the villages. Electric power outages were also registered in the Astrakhan and Volgograd Regions and in the KrasnodarTerritory. One of the branches of the Interregional Distribution Grid Company "MRSK Yuga", reported, referring to energy veterans, that such wind loads on grid networks had not been observed for several decades.

Georgia: inquiry materials on Zurab Zhvaniya's death, not excluding his murder, got posted on the Internet

On March 20, photos taken in the venue of the death of the former Prime Minister of Georgia Zurab Zhvaniya and in the morgue appeared on the Internet; they show traces, suggesting that Zhvaniya could be killed. The earlier voiced official version of his death was an accidental poisoning with household natural gas. The General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) of Georgia has launched an inquiry into the fact of posting the inquiry materials on the Internet.

On March 21, the inquiry into the former Premier's death resulted in detention of Mikhail Dzadzamiya, the former shift head of Zhvaniya's security, and Levan Chachua, the former head of a division at the National Forensic Bureau, both accused of neglectful attitude to their duties. Also on March 21, Vano Merabishvili, the former Interior Minister, was questioned within the case of Zhvaniya's death. The reason for his summon was in the haste, with which Merabishvili, the then MIA's boss, announced to the public the cause of the Premier's death, a source from the GPO has explained. Mikhail Saakashvili, the former Georgian President, was also summoned to witness on Zurab Zhvaniya's case, but he has already stated that he would not come to the country.

Case of former Mayor of Astrakhan Mikhail Stolyarov sent to court

On March 21, the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) announced the completion of the inquiry into the case of the former Mayor of Astrakhan Mikhail Stolyarov, who was detained on charges of taking a bribe of 10 million roubles on November 13, 2013. The criminal case with the approved indictment was sent to the Kirov District Court of Astrakhan for consideration on the merits. Mikhail Stolyarov earlier stated his innocence and refused to cooperate with the investigation.

South Ossetia: parliamentary elections appointed

On March 21, Leonid Tibilov, the President of South Ossetia, decreed on the date of parliamentary elections – they will take place on June 8. South Ossetia holds them under the proportional system with possible participation of 15 political parties. The current parliament of South Ossetia, elected on May 21, 2009, has 34 MPs representing three parties: the Communist Party, "Edinstvo" (Unity) Party and People's Party.

Volgograd: trial on "Bellagio" explosion passes conviction

On March 18, the Tsentralny District Court of Volgograd convicted the owner of the "Bellagio" Cafe, where an explosion occurred in February 2012, causing burns of varying severity to 25 people. Andrei Koshkadaev, accused of violating fire safety regulations and storage of goods and products that failed to meet safety standards, and who refused to plead guilty, was sentenced to 2.5 years of imprisonment with the same probation period – 2.5 years.

North-Caucasian militants confirm death of Doku Umarov, leader of "Imarat Kavkaz"

On March 18, militants of Northern Caucasus finally confirmed the death of the leader of "Imarat Kavkaz" Doku (Dokku) Umarov. According to a statement released by the information resources that support the armed underground of North Caucasus, Ali Abu-Mukhammad (Aliaskhab Kebekov) was elected to be a new Amir of "Imarat Kavkaz". The appointment of a Dagestani to this post indicates some transformations in the underground, experts believe. Dagestani journalists said that the appointment of Aliaskhab Kebekov was expected. At the same time, the spokesman of the National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC) of the Russian Federation said in his comment on the information about Umarov's death that Russian security services had no official confirmation of the fact.

Azerbaijan: sentence passed on riots in Ismailly

On March 17, the Sheki Court on Grave Crimes of Azerbaijan passed a guilty verdict against 18 defendants on the case of mass riots in Ismailly on January 23-24, 2013, where about 2000 persons took part; people were dissatisfied with the local authorities. Real imprisonment was appointed to 10 defendants; and eight others were sentenced to conditional imprisonment. The first group includes the well-known oppositionists Ilgar Mamedov and Tofig Yagublu. The leader of the civil movement "Republican Alternative" (ReAl) Ilgar Mamedov was sentenced to seven years in prison, and Tofig Yagublu, the deputy chairman of the "Musavat" Party – to five years. Local human rights activists and oppositional leaders condemned the Azerbaijani authorities for the guilty verdict to Mamedov and Yagublu and urged to reconsider the verdict, release Mamedov and Yagublu and stop their criminal prosecution. The European Union has also condemned the verdict to the oppositionists, who had been earlier recognized as "prisoners of conscience" by the Amnesty International.