News

May 12, 2020 08:36

• Islam scholars treat song broadcast from minarets in Makhachkala as inappropriate

  The message that Dagestanis are unhappy with the broadcast of military songs from the loudspeakers installed on mosque minarets in Dagestan arrived on May 11 at the SMS service of the "Caucasian Knot".

May 12, 2020 08:25

• MfE sets up tent camp for Azerbaijani citizens in Dagestan

  In the city of Derbent and in the Derbent District of Dagestan, about 700 Azerbaijani citizens are waiting for the opening of the Russian-Azerbaijani border. For them, it was decided to set up a tent camp, for 210 places so far.

May 12, 2020 00:07

• PFPA activist arrested in Azerbaijan

  Azerbaijani activist Jeikhun Rzaev, who was detained in Mingachevir, was sentenced to 10 days of arrest for disobeying the police. Members of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA) treat the activist's arrest as politically motivated.

May 11, 2020 21:57

• Instagram users criticize MIA's version about arson attacks in North Ossetia

  A resident of Irafsky District set fire to a school, a kindergarten, and a private building out of personal hostility, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) reported. The police version of hooliganism is unconvincing, note Instagram users. They suggest that someone's economic interests stay behind the arson attacks.

May 11, 2020 19:02

• Chechen officials ignore quarantine rules on Mourning and Sorrow Day

  In Chechnya, on the Day of Mourning and Sorrow of the Peoples of the Republic, subordinates of the leader of Chechnya visited his father's grave without wearing protective masks and without respecting social distancing. This can be concluded from the report broadcasted by the "Grozny" ChGTRK (Chechen TV and Radio Company). In Chechnya, top-ranking officials do not comply with their own regulations, for violation of which ordinary people are punished, local residents note.

May 11, 2020 18:51

• Week in the Caucasus: review of main events of May 4-10, 2020

  Spread of the coronavirus infection in the Caucasus; Victory Day celebration in the conditions of self-isolation; Georgia's negative reaction to Mikhail Saakashvili's new post in Ukraine, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of May 4-10, 2020, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

May 11, 2020 18:43

• In NCFD, Dagestan registers largest number of new coronavirus-infected patients

  By 10:45 a.m. Moscow time, in Northern Caucasus, 391 new cases of the coronavirus infection were registered within 24 hours, including 119 in Dagestan, the "Rospotrebnadzor" (Russian Federal Agency for Consumer Supervision) reports. Dagestan still leads in the total number of coronavirus-infected people in the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD) since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

May 11, 2020 13:22

• Restrictions on entry to Tbilisi lifted

  Today, the capital of Georgia, which was closed because of the coronavirus epidemic, has been opened for entry and exit, the Georgian government announces.

May 11, 2020 13:08

• Videos on social networks with Chechen law enforcers prove overcoming fear in society

  The number of videos confirming human rights violations in Chechnya is growing, and that fact irritates the authorities, suggests Alexei Malashenko, a member of the Expert Council of the Carnegie Moscow Centre. Such videos are a form of public protest, Chechen blogger Tumso Abdurakhmanov believes.

May 11, 2020 11:33

• Soldier of NKR's Defence Army dies

  Sasun Margaryan, a soldier of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), has died from a gunshot wound.

May 11, 2020 11:20

• Rights defenders note decline in democracy level in Georgia

  The human rights organization "Freedom House" has stressed that politicization of the judiciary is a serious problem in Georgia: the authorities pass legislative acts by disregarding citizens' opinions.

May 11, 2020 11:08

• Residents of Chechnya note chaotic nature of help distribution by Kadyrov Foundation

  The Chechen authorities have reported on the distribution of monetary help to poor families organized by the Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation. However, the residents of the republic interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have claimed that the recipients of the targeted help are often not those who really need it.

May 11, 2020 10:55

• Two PFPA activists arrested for 30 days each

  Ali Imankhanly and Elkhan Aliev, activists of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), received 30 days of administrative arrest each for "violating the quarantine regime" and "disobedience to the police," the party has reported.

May 10, 2020 10:32

• Dagestani MfE apologizes for war songs from loudspeakers on mosques

  The broadcasting of war time songs through the loudspeakers installed by the Ministry for Emergencies (MfE) on mosques in Makhachkala has triggered a mixed reaction in social networks. The action was not agreed with the clergy, the Muftiate has reported. The MfE explained that they wanted to support those who were on self-isolation because of the coronavirus and apologized to believers.

May 10, 2020 10:26

• Residents of Grozny complain of fines for violating "mask regime"

  After the introduction of mandatory wearing of medical masks in public places, law enforcers in Grozny began imposing fines on violators, they would not be lenient, local residents complain.

May 10, 2020 10:20

• Call of Chechen law enforcers to stay at home outrages Instagram users

  A video appeal of law enforcers from the Gudermes District about the need of self-isolation is unconvincing, because they had not lost their salaries and the ability to feed their families, commentators on the Instagram and residents of Chechnya have pointed out.

May 09, 2020 22:52

• Circassian activists help Syrian returnees

  Activists from the group "Help to Syrian compatriots" and the NGO "Paryt" have spread 103 food packages among Circassian repatriates.

May 09, 2020 22:41

• Residents of Chechnya are sceptical about Kadyrov's promise to weaken quarantine

  The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, has announced the opening, on May 11, of minor enterprises engaged in the sphere of services. However, local businessmen have suggested that under self-isolation, their work will be unprofitable. Once the motor traffic is very limited, receiving permits to reopen servicing stations is senseless, Instagram users have pointed out.

May 09, 2020 22:36

• Residents of Georgia mark May 9 under restrictions and bans

  Residents of Georgia celebrate Victory Day amid restrictions associated both with coronavirus and political motives. The country's Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has reminded about the ban to use of communist and fascist symbols; and the authorities, due to the epidemic, have limited visits to crowded places. The residents of Tbilisi interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have noted that May 9 is a sacred holiday.

May 09, 2020 17:16

• Rights defenders criticize Armenian MPs for brawl in parliament

  At a sitting of the Armenian parliament, after a verbal skirmish of MPs from the ruling party with those of the opposition, a mass brawl broke out. The Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, has called the opposition's actions a provocation, while human rights defenders have criticized the ruling party, accusing it of intolerance of opponents.