Persoverzicht Tsjetsjenië November 2013

• 2013-11-29
• Europa in de wereld

1 november 2013

North Ossetia will not hold direct governor elections: (i) The legislature of the Republic of North Ossetia has passed a first reading of a draft bill which would amend the republican constitution and cancel direct gubernatorial elections in North Ossetia. North Ossetia has become the third North Caucasus republic (after Ingushetia and Dagestan) where the head of the region will be elected by regional deputies. (ii) Vedomosti does not rule out that gubernatorial elections in some Russian regions, which were scheduled for 2015-2016, may be held already next year. (Kommersant, RBK daily, Vedomosti)

5 november 2013

Attacks on officials in Dagestan; Putin signs anti-terrorism law: (i) An official from Dagestan's finance ministry was killed in an attack on Saturday in Makhachkala (capital of Dagestan). In a separate attack on Monday in Makhachkala, a federal judge was shot dead. Three suspected militants were killed in a clash in Dagestan's Laksky district. (ii) President Putin has signed into law a bill requiring that relatives of terrorists compensate for the damage caused by their attacks. (iii) In an interview with Reuters, PM Medvedev pledged that the Russian authorities would do everything to guarantee safety at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. (Gazeta.ru, ITAR-TASS, Kommersant, MT, RG)

7 november 2013

Putin calls on Zhirinovsky to show restraint in statements: Meeting with leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) Zhirinovsky yesterday at a residence outside Moscow, President Putin spoke against tightening migration legislation and called on Zhirinovsky to abstain from making statements that could harm Russia's interests. Press recalls in this context Zhirinovsky's remarks about the North Caucasus during a televised program last month. Zhirinovsky has proposed to limit the birth rate in the North Caucasus and restrict the movement of people from the North Caucasus across Russia as an anti-terrorist measure. (Kommersant, KP, RG; Ekho Moskvy)

8 november 2013

At least one killed in Dagestan blast: At least one person was killed in an explosion at a grocery store on Friday in Makhachkala. Last week, two explosive devices went off near liquor shops in Makhachkala. (Gazeta.ru)

11 november 2013

Kudrin to present concept for reforming law enforcement agencies: (i) Vedomosti reports that former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, who has recently joined the Interior Ministry's Public Council (advisory body), is expected to present on Monday a concept for a systemic reform of the country's law enforcement bodies. The authors of the concept said that the law enforcement system in its current form impedes economic growth and induces instability in society. The proposed reform should affect not only the Interior Ministry, but also the Investigative Committee and the Federal Drug Control Service. (ii) Addressing police on their professional holiday on 10 November, President Putin called on law enforcement officers to closely monitor the situation in the North Caucasus. (RG, Vedomosti)

Russia's border with Ukraine without TIR Carnets: Tomorrow, TIR Carnets will be banned for the most congested road checkpoints, which are on the Russian Ukrainian border and which are subordinated to the Central Customs Directorate of the Federal Customs Service (FCS). FCS tries to calm down carriers, who fear a congestion of trucks at the border. FCS claims that the transit without TIR Carnets is well organized in southern Russia, the North Caucasus, the Volga and Ural regions, Siberia and Russia's Far East, as well as in the Moscow airports Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo. (RG)

20 november 2013

Attacks on police in Dagestan: (i) Two police officers and a civilian were killed and three policemen were wounded in a twin attack on police yesterday in Makhachkala. One of the suspected attackers later was killed in a clash. The militant killed was suspected of involvement in last month's attack on a Volgograd bus which claimed the lives of seven people. (ii) Two suspected militants were killed early on Wednesday in Kabardino-Balkaria's Baksan district. (Gazeta.ru, Kommersant)

21 november 2013

Suspect in Volgograd bombing killed: According reports by Russian law enforcement agency they have killed an Islamist militant they suspect of ordering a recent bombing attack on a passenger bus in the southern city of Volgograd. The National Anti-Terrorism Committee said in a statement Wednesday that Murad Kasumov was one of three suspected militants killed during a standoff with police in Makhachkala, the capital of the restive republic of Dagestan. Reportedly, Kasumov had headed up an armed gang since the start of this year and was involved in a terrorist attacks in Dagestan. (Kommersant, Interfax)

26 november 2013

Dagestan to be divided into four districts?: Reportedly, Dagestan may be divided into four territorial districts and the head of Dagestan will have four envoys in these districts. Some experts consider the idea disputable from the legal point of view. (Kommersant)

28 november 2013

Police detain suspected Islamic extremists: (i) Law enforcement officers have detained 15 suspected members of the al-Qaida linked Islamist extremist group Takfir wal-Hijra and seized weapons and explosives in an operation in Moscow. According to Rossiyskaya Gazeta, nationals of Russia, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are among the detainees. (ii) Three militants were killed in an operation in Dagestan. The National Antiterrorism Committee said that one of the militants had been identified as a local gang leader. In a separate operation, two militants were killed in Ingushetia. (Gazeta.ru, Kommersant, MT, RG, RIAN)

29 november 2013

North Ossetia head to be elected by legislature: North Ossetia's legislature has approved the bill under which the head of North Ossetia will be elected by the regional legislature. North Ossetia has become the third region in the North Caucasus (after Dagestan and Ingushetia), which refused from holding direct gubernatorial elections. (Izvestia, Kommersant, RG)