In Ingushetia, the bill "On the ban on perpetuating Stalin's memory" was secretly withdrawn from consideration. The local parliament passed it in its first reading in 2017, on the eve of the 73rd anniversary of the deportation of the Ingush and Chechens. Deputies proposed banning the installation of monuments to Stalin, naming cities, villages, and streets after him, and displaying his portraits in a favorable context. Read more in our video.

Ismail Hasanov was sentenced by a court in the Azerbaijani city of Ganja to 3.5 years in prison for participating in military operations in Ukraine as part of the Russian private military company Wagner. He was charged under Article 279.1 of the Criminal Code (regarding participation in the activities of armed groups outside the country), the publication Oxu reported.

The US Helsinki Commission expressed grave concern over a BBC investigation into the use of chemical weapons by Georgia's ruling party to suppress peaceful protests last year. This was stated in a statement released by the organization's chairman and Senator Roger Wicker, co-chair Joe Wilson, and commission members Sheldon Whitehouse and Steve Cohen.

A military court in Rostov-on-Don found Dagestani blogger Arslan Mirzayev (Ali Charinsky) guilty of disseminating false information about the Russian army and calling for terrorism. He was sentenced in absentia to eight years in a general regime penal colony and a fine of 1 million rubles.