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Latest North Caucasus Weekly Articles
Is Sufi Islam Losing Its Dominant Role in Dagestan?
The statutes of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Dagestan say that all imams in the republican mosques must be appointed by the official mufti of Dagestan. In practice, this does not normally happen. The communities themselves propose the candidacies of mosque imams and ask... MORE
Security Forces Reportedly Kill 11 Rebels in Kabardino-Balkaria
Kabardino-Balkarian jamaat has regained little of its strength since its leader, Amir Abdullah (Robert Zankishiev), was killed in a police operation in Nalchik on November 10 (TASS, November 10). In fact, the jamaat has suffered new, even more substantial losses. On November 22, the authorities... MORE
Moscow Tries to Seduce the Circassians and Abkhaz With Plans for New Highway
On November 24, Russia’s TASS state news agency announced the signing of the international project for building a highway connecting Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachaevo-Cherkessia to Abkhazia. The new highway would cut across the Caucasus Mountains and connect the central North Caucasus to Abkhazia in the South... MORE
Dagestani Truck Drivers Put up Surprisingly Strong Fight for Their Rights
On November 29, truck drivers across Russia continued gathering forces for a large protest in Moscow, while the authorities put various obstacles in their way (Ekho Moskvy, November 29). The previous day, November 28, the road police in Kalmykia stopped Dagestani truck drivers who were... MORE
Death of Influential Dagestani Sufi Sheikh May Alter Balance of Power in Republic
The recent elections for the sheikh and imam of a mosque located on Vengerskikh Boitsov Street (Hungarian Fighters Street), in the Dagestani capital of Makhachkala, were quite characteristic of the situation throughout the republic. According to official rules, a mosque imam is appointed by the... MORE
Was Chechnya’s Leader the Target of an IS-Inspired Assassination Plot?
Experts have paid insufficient attention to news of an assassination attempt against Ramzan Kadyrov at the beginning of November 2015. The reported attempt on the Chechen ruler’s life illuminates what the current situation in Chechnya is like. On November 1, Russian media made the surprise... MORE
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Was Chechnya’s Leader the Target of an IS-Inspired Assassination Plot?
Experts have paid insufficient attention to news of an assassination attempt against Ramzan Kadyrov at the beginning of November 2015. The reported attempt on the Chechen ruler’s life illuminates what the current situation in Chechnya is like. On November 1, Russian media made the surprise... MORE
Karachaevo-Cherkessian Clans Reportedly Unite Against Governor’s Reappointment
The first term of the governor of Karachaevo-Cherkessia, Rashid Temrezov, will end in 2016, and experts say the republic’s clans have been gearing up to forestall his reappointment by the Kremlin. While Temrezov has been quite successful in maintaining good relations with the federal authorities... MORE
Idea of Merging Adygea with Krasnodar Region Reemerges Again
On November 6, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Adygea’s governor, Aslan Thakushinov. The governor boasted that economic conditions in the republic are improving under his leadership. According to Thakushinov, Adygea’s own revenues increased three-fold while the subsidies the republic receives from Moscow were reduced... MORE
Islamic State Apparently Wins Its Competition With Caucasus Emirate
Following the killing of the Ingush jamaat’s amir in Nazran on August 31, the Kabardino-Balkarian jamaat also experienced a major setback. The Russian security services managed to kill Robert Zankishiev, who was better known among the armed Islamist underground movement of the North Caucasus as... MORE