Latest Articles about North Caucasus
The Roots and Transformation of the Dagestan Insurgency
In early April, two women from Dagestan were named by the federal authorities as key suspects in the March 29 suicide attacks which targeted the Lubyanka and Park Kultury metro stations near to the interior ministry and the headquarters of the Federal Security Service (FSB)... MORE
Khloponin Focuses on Dagestan’s Economy While Others See Civil War Looming
During a visit to Dagestan on September 21, Moscow’s envoy to the North Caucasus, Aleksandr Khloponin, urged the republican leadership to use the opportunities that had been provided by the federal authorities to make advances in economic development. “The time when it was possible to... MORE
Analysts debate the nature of the split within Caucasus Emirate
On September 21, Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov, in his capacity as “emir” of the North Caucasus Emirate, issued a video in which he dismissed three emirs from the Emirate’s Chechen sector – Aslambek Vadalov, Khusein Gakaev and Tarkhan Gaziev. In the video, Umarov says... MORE
Separatism Spreads in the North Caucasus while Moscow Blames Outsiders
Many observers have noticed that the situation in the North Caucasus is further deteriorating against the backdrop of two recent suicide bombings in the region, despite complacent reports of Russian officials who try to portray the desirable as reality. According to Russian authorities, the intensity... MORE
Threat of Renewed Ethnic Clashes Reemerges Following North Ossetia Suicide Attack
On September 15, an Ingush insurgent leader claimed responsibility for planning the September 9 suicide bombing at the central market in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia. According to the leader of Ingush sector, named Adam, the attack was carried out by the Riyadus Salikhin battalion. Calling the... MORE
Poland Detains Chechen Rebel Envoy as Violence Continues in the North Caucasus
London-based Chechen rebel envoy Akhmed Zakaev was arrested today (September 17) in Poland, where he had traveled to attend the World Congress of the Chechen People taking place in Warsaw on September 16-18. A Polish police spokesman told Reuters that Zakaev, who was granted political... MORE
The Specter of Suicide Bombing Haunts the North Caucasus
Just four days after the September 5 suicide bombing in Buinaksk, Dagestan, reportedly carried out by Zamir Terekbaev, a 26-year-old resident of the village of Andrei-Kurgan in the Neftekumsky district of Russia’s Stavropol region, originally from Dagestan, a powerful blast rocked Vladikavkaz, the capital of... MORE
Security in Kabardino-Balkaria Fails to Improve After Reappointment of President
On September 11, a police armored truck and a gas pipeline were blown up in the Elbrus district, located in the mountainous part of Kabardino-Balkaria. The attack left five servicemen injured and several settlements without gas supplies (ITAR-TASS, September 11). The strength of the blast... MORE
North Caucasus Reality Check on Russian Military Reform
Although the second anniversary of the Russia-Georgia War was marked by little sense of euphoria in Moscow, the operational lessons drawn by the Russian military resulted in the current reform of the armed forces being closely associated with the Five Day War (EDM, August 9).... MORE
Moscow’s North Caucasus Modernization Plans Fall into Limbo Following Series of Suicide Bombings
On September 9, a suicide bomber attacked the central market place in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia. Seventeen people died and 173 received injuries of varying degrees of severity as a result of the attack (RIA Novosti, September 12). The suspected suicide bomber reportedly crossed from the... MORE