Crimean Tatar political prisoners called for an end to repression in Crimea

Crimean activists Osman Arifmemetov and Yashar Muedinov made their final speech via video link at a meeting of the Military Court of Appeal in Vlasikha. Both rejected the prosecution's arguments.

“What non-procedural relations connect judges and FSB investigators that the former accept from the latter only on their word of honor?” said Arifmemetov.

Muedinov, in turn, called for an end to repression in Crimea: “After darkness, light comes anyway. We all walk under the Lord God.”
 
On November 24, 2022, the Southern Military Court found Crimean Tatar activists guilty of terrorist activities and an attempt to seize power. Yashar Muedinov was sentenced to 13 years in a maximum security colony, Osman Arifmemetov – to 14 years. Both were accused of membership in the Islamic party Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is recognized as terrorist in the Russian Federation, but operates freely in Ukraine and European countries.

Последние новости
MMA fighter from Chechnya hospitalized following a brawl involving gunfire in Vladikavkaz
Society
MMA fighter from Chechnya hospitalized following a brawl involving gunfire in Vladikavkaz
18 October 2026

Mixed martial arts fighter Ibragim Islamov, known by the nickname "Nikarkho," sustained a gunshot wound from a non-lethal (traumatic) pistol during an altercation in the center of Vladikavkaz. Two people were injured in the incident, both of whom were hospitalized. The North Ossetia branch of the Russian Interior Ministry has opened a criminal case, and one of the individuals involved has been detained.

Azerbaijan marks 35 years of independence—33 of which have seen the country ruled by a single family
Society
Azerbaijan marks 35 years of independence—33 of which have seen the country ruled by a single family
18 October 2026

On October 18, Azerbaijan celebrates the Day of the Restoration of Independence. It was on this date in 1991 that the republic’s Supreme Soviet adopted a Constitutional Act, formalizing the country’s departure from the Soviet system and the restoration of its state sovereignty.

US Congressman Calls Kobakhidze’s Meeting with Iranian President an “Insult to Trump”
Politics
US Congressman Calls Kobakhidze’s Meeting with Iranian President an “Insult to Trump”
18 October 2026

American Republican Congressman Joe Wilson has criticized Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze for holding talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. The meeting took place in Yerevan on the sidelines of the 17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17).

Drone alert declared across southern Russia this evening
News
Drone alert declared across southern Russia this evening
17 October 2026

On the evening of 17 October, a drone alert was declared again in several districts of Krasnodar Krai. The warning covered Anapa, Gelendzhik, Novorossiysk, Abinsky, Krymsky and Temryuksky districts. Earlier in the day, alerts had also been issued in Sochi, Tuapse municipal district and Mostovsky district.