President Vladimir Putin announced on March 1 that he was nominating Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya’s acting president, as the republic’s new president and was submitting Kadyrov’s name to the republic’s parliament for its approval. According to Newsru.com, Putin made the announcement during a meeting with Kadyrov... MORE

A human rights conference organized under the auspices of the Chechen government was set to open in Grozny on March 1, with some leading Russian and international human rights groups boycotting the event and top Chechen government officials criticizing them for doing so. On March... MORE

Council of Europe Commissioner on Human Rights Thomas Hammarberg was the only major Western figure set to attend the Grozny human rights conference. Hammarberg arrived in Chechnya on February 26 for a three-day visit. According a Council of Europe press release that was posted on... MORE

In a statement posted on the separatist Kavkaz-Center website on February 23, the 63rd anniversary of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin’s deportation of the Chechen and Ingush people in 1944, Chechen rebel leader Dokku Umarov, who is president of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI) and... MORE

“It’s a beautiful girl who should be praised – for her beauty and her figure. As for fear, if you’re a leader, people should fear you. Why? They should not be afraid of being beaten, but they should fear letting down the people who have... MORE

Early in the morning of February 24, Russian Special Forces supported by military troops started to move slowly around the village of Pervy Kizlyarsky, a settlement located in the Kizlyar District of Dagestan. According to the NTV television channel, armored personnel carriers and mobile military... MORE

Chechnya’s parliament confirmed Ramzan Kadyrov as the republic’s president on March 2, just one day after he was nominated by President Vladimir Putin (Chechnya Weekly, March 1). According to Reuters, 56 of the parliament’s 58 deputies cast their ballots for Kadyrov, with one voting against... MORE

Observers in Moscow continued to mull over the significance of Ramzan Kadyrov’s elevation to the post of Chechen president. The daily Vedomosti on March 2 quoted an anonymous Kremlin source as saying that no special demands had been made on Kadyrov in return for his... MORE

In a statement posted on the separatist Daymohk and Chechenpress websites on March 5, Dokka Umarov, president of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI), called on Muslims in the Caucasus to join the “jihad” against Russian forces and Chechnya’s pro-Moscow government. In response to the... MORE

Nearly 10 gambling establishments were vandalized by unknown persons in Maikop, Adygeya, Kavkazky Uzel reported on March 5. The website cited the city’s prosecutor, Andrei Fatin, who told Itar-Tass that more than 100 people were involved in the attacks on the gambling establishments on March... MORE