Latest Articles about North Caucasus
Government Authorities Fail to Provide Security in the North Caucasus
On May 9, several explosions and a suicide attack attempt took place in Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria and Chechnya (www.kavkaz-uzel.ru, May 9). The situation could be called almost normal for the region, which has been plagued by violence in previous years, but with one slight difference. Following... MORE
Chechen Officials Press Moscow to Assist with Demining as Blasts Still Claim Lives
On May 6, the Kavkazsky Uzel (Caucasian Knot) website reported that the Chechen parliament resolved to address Moscow with a request to assist with clearing minefields in the republic. An estimated 24,000 hectares (59,000 acres) of land in Chechnya remain littered with landmines years after... MORE
Yarmuk Jammat Regroups after Death of Astemirov in Sign of new Militant Strategy
Nalchik, the capital city of Kabardino-Balkaria in Russia’s North Caucasus, has been hit be a series of bombings. Explosives were detonated on May 1, during May Day festivities at the local hippodrome as the spectators, including members of the republican government, were about to view... MORE
Chechen Leader Says he Does Not Repress Religion and Press Freedom, or Kill his Opponents
Chechen President, Ramzan Kadyrov, on May 5 slammed a report by a US government commission on infringements of religious freedom worldwide in which he came in for particularly harsh criticism. Earlier this month, Kadyrov was listed a “predator” of press freedom, and last month the... MORE
Nalchik Bomb Attack Endangers the Stability of Kabardino-Balkaria
On May 1, an explosion shook Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria. A home-made explosive device estimated at equaling 3-5 kilograms of TNT went off at the time as current and former republican top officials were entering a tribune set aside for them at the Nalchik... MORE
The Circassian Question is Driving Change in the Northwest Caucasus
On April 28, the President of Karachaevo-Cherkessia, Boris Ebzeyev, accepted the resignation of the republican government. The main reason for the government’s replacement was the ethnic imbalance of power, as Moscow’s envoy to the region Aleksandr Khloponin has demanded that an ethnic Circassian be appointed... MORE
Police Attacked in Dagestan and Kabardino-Balkaria
A fourth person died today (April 30) as the result of a suicide bombing near a traffic police checkpoint in Dagestan’s Kazbeksky district on April 29. Two policemen were killed along with the suicide bomber in the blast, which also wounded 17 people and destroyed... MORE
Transfer of Suspected Militants to Moscow Points to Poor Intelligence on Insurgents
On April 27, the Kavkazsky Uzel (Caucasian Knot) website reported that suspected militants from Ingushetia were now being tortured at Lefortovo, one of the Moscow’s top security prisons. The website indicated that as many as ten suspected militants had been transferred to the FSB headquarters... MORE
Ingush Tycoon Seen as Remedy for the Regional Security and Economic Problems
On April 20, the Russian Investigative Committee announced that it was lifting criminal charges from the well-known Russian billionaire of Ingush descent, Mikhail Gutseriev. Ingushetia’s government welcomed the move and expressed its hope that Gutseriev would contribute to economic projects in the republic (Kommersant, April... MORE
Putin Declares Victory Over Crisis and Asserts Control of the Political Agenda
The procedure of reporting to the State Duma on the government’s performance is meant to be a tough examination, but Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, turned it into an exhibition of the success of his leadership –which had allegedly delivered Russia from the economic crisis and... MORE