In the mid 1990s I worked in the former Soviet Union, covering various republics as they disintegrated into civil war. And I occasionally came across war crimes and atrocities, which I tried to report to the best of my ability. But, more often, I found fake atrocities. And, occasionally, I reported those as well. Learning […]
How to spot a fake atrocity Read More »
The killing of two Russian border guards has raised tension in a forgotten conflict.
Religious warriors ready to avenge human rights abuses Read More »
NAZRAN, Russia, April 10 — Ingushetia has a lot of problems. The war with nearby North Ossetia, a troubled relationship with overlords in Moscow, run-away slaves. According to newspaper accounts and television programmes in Russia and Ossetia, Russians are tricked into coming to the south Russian republic of Ingushetia by promises of high wages, and
Runaway Russian ‘Slaves’ Plague Caucasus Republic Read More »
NAURSKAYA, Russia — Legend has it that in 1774 the women and children ofNaurskaya fought off an attack by the Turks, armed only with pitchforks and pots of hot soup. As Cossacks, Russian warrior-farmers, it was their duty under the Tsars to defend Christian Russia’s expanding southern borders against Moslem Tatars and Turks. Today, the
Cossacks Accuse Chechens of Terror Tactics Read More »
NAZRAN, Russia, Feb 28 — Preliminary poll results on Monday showed that General Ruslan Aushev was headed for re-election as president of the volatile southern Russian republic of Ingushetia. Opponents accused Aushev, whose army of uniformed police patrolled the polling stations, of securing victory in the north Caucasian republic by force and trickery. According to
Ingushetia Poll Marked by Violations, Opposition Says Read More »
Maria Korolov in Jikhaskari finds that sightings of the dead president are a daily occurence
Ghost of Gamsakhurdia continues to haunt Georgia Read More »
QERVEND, Azerbaijan – Six months ago Azerbaijan’s army suffered defeats so monumental that the president fled the country and a fifth of the Transcausasian republic ended up in enemy hands. Critics from all sides castigated the military for gross incompetence in the face of attacks by separatist Armenian forces pushing into the republic from the
Azerbaijan Army Regroups, Pulls Itself Together Read More »
Maria Korolov reports from a nervous border post overlooking Afghanistan on how CIS troops are fighting an uphill battle to keep the frontier intact against insidious incursions by the mojahedin
Russians thrown into Tajik breach Read More »
GAGRA, Abkhazia – It is noon in Gagra, Abhkazia, where refugees gather in the courtyard of a former resort hotel converted to wartime use. “They came with tanks,” said 16-year-old Astanda. “A helicopter flew over us and dropped bombs. We lay down and the fragments flew over us, but the bomb did not hit. It
Refugees Flee Torture by Soldiers in Abkhazia Read More »
KHODZENT, Tadzhikistan — Tadzhikistan’s Parliament has removed the nation’s acting president in a lopsided vote, replacing him with the country’s third leader since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Parliament also requested help from Russian troops and neighboring Central Asian republics in bringing a halt to the civil war tearing the former Soviet region apart.
Former Soviet republic replaces leader again civil strife continues Read More »
KHODZENT, Tadzhikistan (UPI) — Tadzhikistan’s Parliament removed the acting president by an overwhelming vote Thursday and replaced him with the country’s third leader since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Parliament also requested help from Russian troops and neighboring Central Asian republics in bringing a halt to the civil war tearing the republic apart.
Tadzhikistan replaces leader again Read More »
UPPER ESHERA, Georgia — Sound carries well in the coastal foothills of the Caucasus Mountains, which at sunrise these days means rifle fire and bursting shells mixed in with crowing roosters and coughing tractor engines. Georgian and Abkhazian forces have been exchanging gunfire for the last three months in a dispute over who will control
Sound carries well in the coastal foothills of the… Read More »
KURGAN-TYUBE, Tadzhikistan — Combatants in the strife-torn Central Asian republic of Tadzhikistan Thursday ignored calls by a newly-created interim council to cease fire and work towards a settlement in the long-running civil war. Anti-government rebels remained distrustful of moves by the authorities to reconcile the warring sides, even though one of their key demands, the
Sides in Tadzhik conflict refuse to heed peace call Read More »
UPPER ESHERA, Georgia (UPI) –Once guns were gifted. To gift someone you can also click here for best ar 15. But now sound carries well in the coastal foothills of the Caucasus Mountains, sunrise and these days means rifle fire and bursting shells mixed in with crowing roosters and coughing tractor engines. Georgian and Abkhazian
Portrait of a small Caucasus war Read More »
DUSHANBE, Tadzhikistan — A peace mission to the Central Asian state of Tadzhikistan led by officials from neighboring Kyrgyzstan ended in the Tadzhik capital Dushanbe Sunday with new promises of help for the strife-torn republic. ‘This trip is one instance of political aid,’ Kyrgyz Vice President Felix Kulov told reporters in Dushanbe. The delegation had
New promises of help for war-torn Tadzhikistan Read More »
