Major General Vladimir Kotov, previously deputy head of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Voronezh Region, has been appointed Minister of Internal Affairs of Ingushetia. The ceremony to introduce the new head of the department was held in Magas.

In Moscow, blogger Areg Shchepikhin was sentenced to five years in prison. The defense announced its intention to appeal the verdict.

Lawyers for Russian citizen and billionaire Samvel Karapetyan reported that investigators in Armenia have brought new economic charges against him. The defense claims the charges are unfounded and lack any legal basis.

Georgia's fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, commented on the release in Yerevan of Georgi Kinoyan, who was detained while crossing the Georgian-Armenian border.