Latest North Caucasus Weekly Articles
Ingushetia’s New President Faces an Uphill Battle
The appointment of Yunus-bek Yevkurov, the career military intelligence officer with experience in the Kosovo (1999) and Chechnya (2000) wars, as the president of Ingushetia, the smallest North Caucasian republic, in late October 2008 was perceived by its people as opening up the possibility of... MORE
Chechnya Starts the New Year on a Tense Note
After numerous statements by various ministers in Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov’s government regarding the victories that they scored in 2008 in Chechnya (https://www.grozny-inform.ru/), 2009 began with unpleasant news streaming in from outside the republic for Chechen authorities. The Russian justice system released from prison a... MORE
The War on Dagestan’s Police Continues
The Regnum News Agency on January 28 quoted Russia’s Interior Ministry as reporting that an arms cache containing several grenades for grenade launchers, eight hand grenades, more than a thousand cartridges of various calibers and food and medicine was discovered in the village of Endreyaul... MORE
Medvedev and Yevkurov Meet Again, This Time in Moscow
President Dmitry Medvedev met with Ingushetia’s President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov in the Kremlin on January 28, a follow-up to the meeting they had in Magas on January 20 during the Russian president’s trip to Ingushetia (North Caucasus Weekly, January 23). Kavkazky Uzel reported that in the... MORE
FSB Accuses Zakaev of Organizing Armed Attacks in Chechnya
Itar-Tass and Interfax on January 27 quoted the public affairs center of the Federal Security Service (FSB) accusing Akhmed Zakaev, the London-based prime minister of the separatist Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI), of directing rebel attacks in Chechnya. The FSB told the news agency that... MORE
Seven Chechens Arrested in Austria in Connection with Murder of Ex-Kadyrov Bodyguard
Agence France-Presse reported on January 28 that Austrian police had arrested seven suspects that day in connection with the murder of Umar Israilov in Vienna on January 13. Israilov, a 27-year-old former Chechen rebel who was subsequently forced to serve in Ramzan Kadyrov’s security detail,... MORE
Markelov Assassination Tied to Release of Budanov?
Mountains of flowers covering fresh bloodstains have become a familiar sign of the times in Moscow. A memorial consisting of bouquets and burning candles was spontaneously erected by people on the place where lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova were murdered on January 19... MORE
Deteriorating Security Situation in Ingushetia Sparks First Ever Visit to Region by Medvedev
The security situation in Ingushetia still bothers Moscow so much that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev paid an unexpected visit to the republic on January 20, along with the director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and other top officials. Calling the situation in Ingushetia very... MORE
Ruslan Yamadaev’s Brother: He was Murdered by Kadyrov’s Associate
The Rosbalt News Agency reported on January 20 that Isa Yamadaev, brother of Ruslan Yamadaev, the former State Duma deputy murdered in Moscow last September (North Caucasus Weekly, September 26), says investigators believe the murder was committed by Aslan Diliev, a former member of the... MORE
Human Rights Groups Press Austria to Investigate Murder of Chechen
Interfax reported on January 15 that leading human rights groups had called on Austrian authorities to investigate the January 13 murder in Vienna of Umar Israilov, a 27-year-old former Chechen rebel who surrendered and briefly served as a bodyguard to Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov before... MORE