Latest North Caucasus Weekly Articles

Yedelev Alleges Western Special Services, Litvinenko Behind Nalchik Raid

Deputy Russian Interior Minister Colonel-General Arkady Yedelev claimed on June 1 that the organizers of the October 2005 rebel raid on Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, were in contact with Western special services. “There is information that the organizers of the attempted armed revolt in... MORE

Vyacheslav Izmailov: We Know Who Ordered Anna Politkovskaya’s Murder

Liberation reported on May 28 that Novaya gazeta, which has been conducting its own investigation into the October 2006 murder of its award-winning correspondent, Anna Politkovskaya, has learned who ordered the killing. According to a Russian-language translation of the Liberation article posted on the Inopressa.ru... MORE

Expert Says Kadyrov Wants to Lead the North Caucasus

Kavkazky Uzel reported on May 31 that a number of observers in the North Caucasus believe that Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov’s call during his meeting with Kabardino-Balkaria Republic (KBR) President Arsen Kanokov earlier this month for the leaders of all the North Caucasian regions to... MORE

Newspapers Detail the Criminal Activities of Security Forces in Chechnya

Vremya novostei reported on May 24 that a Chechen police commander, Ruslan Asuev, was promoted to head a department in a Grozny police station shortly after killing two Grozny residents – Khamzat Gaitukiev and a 20-year-old woman identified only by her first name Madina –... MORE

Is Ramzan Angling to Take Over Ingushetia?

Ingush President Murat Zyazikov has said he believes his republic’s political unification with neighboring Chechnya would be inexpedient. “My position has always been that both the Chechen Republic and the Republic of Ingushetia are two independent regions, which, as subjects of the [Russian] Federation, are... MORE

No Terrorist Acts in Russia Since Beslan: Whom to Thank?

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On May 22, Nikolai Patrushev, head of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), gave an interview to the Izvestia newspaper. In the interview, Patrushev claimed that Russia's fight against terrorism was successful. Answering a question about terrorist threats around the world and in Russia, the... MORE

Plan to Extend Kadyrov’s Term Gains Traction

An initiative floated on May 16 by Chechnya’s human rights ombudsman, Nurdi Nukhazhiev, to extend the terms of Chechnya’s president and parliament, as well as that of the Russian president (Chechnya Weekly, May 17), received backing on May 17 from Dukvakha Abdurakhmanov, the speaker of... MORE

Mufti Admits Some Chechen Youths Joining Rebels

The Mufti of the Chechen Republic, Sultan Mirzaev, has commented on the fact that some young people in the republic have been heading to the mountains to join the rebels. Kavkazky Uzel, on May 23, quoted Mirzaev as stating that during recent months, around twenty... MORE

Amnesty International Issues Reports on Disappearances

Amnesty International on May 23 issued a 22-page report on Chechnya entitled “What justice for Chechnya’s disappeared?” Aside from the specific issue of the disappearances, the report paints a bleak picture of the overall human rights situation in Chechnya. “The recently appointed President of Chechnya,... MORE