A noticeable rise in insurgent activity has been observed during the summer of 2007. A link may exist with the recent policies of the Chechen leader, Doku Umarov, who has made new leadership appointments within the resistance movement. These changes are aimed at allowing the... MORE

The recent relative calm in Chechnya has allowed for local security officials to start speaking once again about the defeat of the insurgency. On September 16, Ruslan Alkhanov, the pro-Russian Chechen Interior Minister who just two weeks ago had to disclaim rumors about a possible... MORE

- Chechen Interior Ministry: Most Rebel Leaders Dead Chechen Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov claimed on September 16 that practically all the heads of the larger rebel groups in Chechnya, from the so-called brigadier generals of Ichkeria and front commanders on down, have been killed, ITAR-Tass... MORE

The Memorial human rights group reports that kidnappings in Chechnya are significantly down this year. “We have registered a sharp drop - by three-quarters - in the number of kidnappings, and a very significant drop in disappearances and killings in Chechnya,” Aleksandr Cherkasov, a member... MORE

Russian news agencies reported on September 18, that Rappani Khalilov, aka “Rabbani,” the commander of the North Caucasus insurgency’s “Dagestani Front,” was killed in a special operation in village of Novy Sulak, on the outskirts of the Dagestani city of Kizilyurt. Kommersant reported on September... MORE

The violence at the protest in Nazran on September 19 took place against the backdrop of continued insurgent attacks on law-enforcement personnel in Ingushetia. Unidentified attackers shot up a UAZ vehicle carrying policemen in central Nazran on September 19, Interfax reported. According to the news... MORE

During the past week, the republic of Kabardino-Balkaria has been in the Russian news for three separate and important reasons. First, there has been a marked increase in the activity of the local mujahideen. Second, the investigation of the Nalchik attack (which occurred in October... MORE

Kavkazky Uzel reported on September 11 that residents of Ingushetia are alarmed by the worsening security situation in their republic and that some are even contemplating leaving Ingushetia for good. Movlatkhan, a 43-year-old Chechen refugee who lives in Nazran, told Kavkazky Uzel correspondent Timur Khamkhoev:... MORE

During the last few years, all of the ethnic republics of the Northern Caucasus – Dagestan, Chechnya, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachaevo-Cherkessia and Adygeia – have undergone changes in their leadership. The Kremlin officials responsible for the region, such as Vladislav Surkov [1] (apparently the region is... MORE