On July 3, the prime minister of Adygea, Murat Kumpilov, received a member of the Jordanian parliament, Munir Sobrok. The visitor from Jordan reportedly came to Adygea to explore the situation in the republic and make inquiries as to whether the Adygean authorities were prepared... MORE

The main news in Russia last week was the tragedy of the flash flood in Krymsk, much the same way as a year ago it was the sinking of the cruise ship “Bulgaria.” Two years ago, devastating wildfires in central Russia dominated the summer news... MORE

Despite having consigned most members of Greece’s most violent anarchist groups to prison since 2010, there are new concerns amongst Greek authorities that the June 27 car-bombing of the Athens headquarters of Microsoft could mark a resurgence in anarchist political violence, a resurgence fuelled by... MORE

The Syrian conflict is emerging as an extremely attractive recruiting ground for jihadi groups - in February, Ayman al-Zawahiri, the emir of al-Qaida, called upon “every Muslim and every honorable and free person in Turkey, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon to go to aid his brothers... MORE

Perhaps one of the most important developments in the war on al-Qaeda in the last two years has been the gradual demise of al-Qaeda Central in Pakistan as a result of the war of attrition carried out by the CIA’s Predator and Reaper drones. Hundreds... MORE

As of July 11, 20 people had already been killed or wounded in insurgency-related violence in Dagestan since the beginning of the month. The total number of casualties in the whole of the North Caucasus in the same period was 26 (www.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/209480/). Out of the... MORE

The upcoming parliamentary elections pose a unique set of challenges to Georgia’s evolving democracy, the country’s stability and potentially to Georgian statehood itself. The challenges include: vote purchase leading to full or partial state capture, Russian military pressure timed to the voting, danger of post-election... MORE

The trials over the December 2011 violence in Zhanaozen are approaching their most dramatic phase. Several political opposition leaders are facing charges ranging from inciting public discord to calling for the violent overthrow of the government and establishing an organized criminal group. In January, Kazakhstan’s... MORE

As the Chechen Republic has been gradually rebuilt following the destruction of two wars, the Islamization of the region has become increasingly evident. While the federal center is not involved in Islamizing Chechnya, it has taken no steps to prevent it. The primary reason for... MORE

On July 6, floods swept through the western parts of Krasnodar region on Russia’s Black Sea coast, killing at least 160 people and leaving tens of thousands more without homes. Most of those killed were in the town of Krymsk, which has a population of... MORE