Karachay–Cherkessia

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Chechnya

Mufti of Chechnya elected leader of North Caucasian Muslims

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•2 min read

The Mufti of Chechnya and known advisor to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, Salakh Mezhiev, has been elected chair of the Coordination Centre of Muslims of the North Caucasus. On 28 September, the Council of Muftis unanimously elected Mezhiyev during a meeting in Cherkessk, the capital city of Karachay–Cherkessia. ‘I congratulate the respected Sheikh Salakh-Khadzhi Mezhiev on his election to this post. I am confident that he will justify the high trust placed in him by religious leaders o

Ramzan Kadyrov with his family at the polling station. Screengrab from Telegram.

Chechnya

Little change after regional elections across North Caucasus

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•2 min read

The United Russia party of President Vladimir Putin has won parliamentary majorities in two North Caucasus republics following elections which saw all current regional MPs keep their seats. Voting began on 6 September for local elections throughout Russia, including in several parts of the North Caucasus. These included the election of MPs to the parliaments of Kabarda-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia. Separately, the heads of Kabarda-Balkaria and Ingushetia were elected by the local

A man waving a separatist Chechen flag in Grozny, 1995. Archive photo, Sergei Shakhijanian

Chechnya

Russia bans North Caucasian national movements

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•3 min read

Russia has banned at least 10 North Caucasian national organisations, declaring them ‘extremist and terrorist’ groups. On 25 July, Russia’s Justice Ministry updated its list of ‘extremist organisations’ to include the organisations, after a 7 June ruling by the Supreme Court declaring the ‘Anti Russian Separatist Movement’ an extremist organisation. At the time, no explanation was provided regarding what the movement referred to, aside from its description as an ‘international public movem

Circassian Genocide

Russian police raid home of parents of exiled Circassian activist

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•2 min read

Russian police have interrogated and confiscated the phones of the parents of a Circassian independence activist in Karachay–Cherkessia after raiding their home. On 19 July, Kase Kik who is currently based in the US, stated that the police in Karachay–Cherkessia conducted a search of his parents’ residence, confiscating their phones in a move he called ‘illegal and unauthorised’. Kik said the search was carried out by the FSB and the local Interior Ministry’s Centre for Combating Extremis

Karachay–Cherkessia

Two police officers killed in second attack in a week in Karachay–Cherkessia

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•1 min read

Two police officers have been killed in the Russian Republic of Karachay–Cherkessia, in a battle with gunmen suspected of killing two other officers a week earlier. According to the authorities, the five assailants were killed after attacking a traffic patrol and killing two officers in Mara-Ayagy, a village in the centre of the republic on Monday morning. Four other members of the security forces were reportedly injured. Following the attack, Karachay–Cherkessia’s Investigative Committee

Karachay–Cherkessia

Two police officers killed in attack in Karachay–Cherkessia

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•1 min read

A group of gunmen has killed two police officers and wounded another in an attack on a police unit in Karachaevsk on the night of Sunday to Monday. The attack was reported by Russia’s Interior Ministry, which stated that a group of unknown gunmen had killed officers Murat Kalakhanov and Roman Gushchin in an attack on their patrol car. One officer, whose identity was not made public, was injured and hospitalised following the attack. The five suspects reportedly stole the police officers’

Protesters gathered outside the airport in Makhachkala, Daghestan. Photo: Ramazan Rashidov/TASS

Antisemitism

What was behind the North Caucasus’ antisemitic surge?

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•7 min read

As the Israel-Hamas war continues, the North Caucasus has seen a number of violent antisemitic incidents. But while Russia maintains that the West and Ukraine are behind the events, others have suggested that the riots have offered an outlet for pent-up frustrations that cannot be expressed towards the government. On 29 October, more than a thousand people stormed Makhachkala airport, ahead of the expected arrival of a flight from Tel Aviv to the Daghestani capital. Footage from the scene