Regional
- Russia’s Justice Ministry designated another Russian organisation in Georgia as undesirable. Tbilisi-based cultural space Frame has announced it is immediately closed after the announcement, which came after it was declared a foreign agent in February. It has urged followers not to comment on or share its social media posts, or mention the organisation in their own publications, citing potential legal consequences under Russian law.
- Russia’s customs service says they found $425,000 hidden in a car belonging to a driver heading to Georgia. According to information released by the agency yesterday, the money was discovered during a customs inspection at the Russian side of the Upper Lars border crossing.
Armenia
- Civil Contract MP Lusine Badalyan was refused entry to Russia to participate in a CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) committee meeting. Badalyan claims no reason was given and Moscow has not commented.
- The Armenian government recognised obtaining 100% of shares in Electric Networks of Armenia, belonging to Russian-Armenian tycoon and opposition figure Samvel Karapetyan, as an ‘overriding’ public interest.
Azerbaijan
- Ilkin Huseynov, has reportedly been detained in connection with the ‘Let Leyli Go to School’ initiative. Reports of the activist and artist’s arrest came after the website, which sought to organise teaching for those boycotting school, had been live for just one day. Fellow activist Javid Agha reported that unidentified individuals arrived at Huseynov’s home at around 4pm on 14 October.
- Turkish President’s Chief Advisor Hasan Nuri Yaşar stated in a post on X that there are forces seeking to drive a wedge between the two countries and that caution is necessary. Baku’s media and broadcasting council has previously claimed that individuals in Turkey are spreading misinformation as protests continue against the ban on hijabs in schools.
- On Wednesday, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held bilateral meetings with the presidents of Israel, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan ahead of the 7th CICA Summit in Baku. During his meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations, strategic cooperation, and regional and international developments. Talks with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev focused on strengthening strategic partnership, expanding trade, and advancing cooperation in energy, transport, logistics, and investment. In his meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Aliyev discussed deepening bilateral ties and enhancing cooperation within regional and international organisations.
Georgia
- The prison guard seen wearing a glove in a video released of prisoner Giorgi Davitadze, who has accused prison staff of rape, no longer works in the penitentiary system. The Special Penitentiary Service told OC Media that Giorgi Varabiovi left his job voluntarily in March 2026.
- Georgian citizens are among the foreign nationals whose possible involvement is being investigated in a cryptocurrency investment fraud and money laundering case in Moldova. Eight people have been placed in pre-trial detention, the country’s Prosecutor’s Office has announced.
- Georgian opposition politician Zurab Japaridze was detained yesterday at an airport in Turkey while travelling to Brussels. The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) reported that Japaridze was held in a cell and had his passport and luggage confiscated. The organisation added that he would be returned to Georgia on Thursday.
- Georgia and seven other countries have signed a new Council of Europe treaty aimed at making it easier to seize assets obtained through criminal activity, including cryptocurrency. The protocol was signed in Strasbourg yesterday, with Georgia among the first eight countries to sign it.
Abkhazia
- The Academy of Sciences of Abkhazia, Abkhazian State University and the Russian State Social University have signed a cooperation agreement. In 2027, the Russian State Social University will offer applicants from Abkhazia 10 state-funded places, some of which will be allocated for study at the college affiliated with the university.
South Ossetia
- Around 300 teachers in South Ossetia will receive one-off payments from Russia under an order issued by Russian President Vladimir Putin. This became known following a meeting between Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko and South Ossetian President Marat Kambolov.
The North Caucasus
- In Ingushetia, the Malgobek department of the republic’s Investigative Committee responded to a complaint with a quote from Felix Dzerzhinsky. Dzerzhinsky founded the VChK (also known as the Cheka), the first iteration of the Soviet secret police and his quote — ‘the fact that you are free is not your merit, but our failure’ — was sent in a letter to Ibragim Tochiev, who was beaten by security personnel.
- Idris Israilov, a former investigator from Chechnya, has been appointed head of a garrison military court in Ukraine’s partially-occupied Zaporizhzhia region. The appointment was made by a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- Nadyrkhan Kadirhanov, a resident of Daghestan, has been found guilty of murdering MMA fighter Magomedrasul Mutaev. He was sentenced to four years, but released from the courtroom after the court took into account the time he had spent in pre-trial detention. On 31 January 2024, Mutaev sustained several gunshot wounds near his home in Makhachkala and died on the way to hospital. The murder was motivated by Kadirhanov’s personal animosity towards Mutaev: witnesses say Kadirhanov had been subjected to humiliation and abuse by the fighter.
- Russia’s Supreme Court has banned the followers of Batalkhadzhi Belkhoroev, designating it a terrorist organisation. According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, members of the Batalkhadzhi community were involved in terrorist attacks in Ingushetia and elsewhere, including the attack on Crocus City Hall. The Batalkhadzhi followers are adherents of the Sufi Sheikh Batalkhadzhi Belkhoroev, who lived in Ingushetia in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
- The Kizlyar District Court has sentenced the unnamed imam of a local mosque to nine years in prison for strangling his wife in December 2025. According to the court he then buried her body before turning himself into the police seven weeks later.
For ease of reading, we choose not to use qualifiers such as ‘de facto’, ‘unrecognised’, or ‘partially recognised’ when discussing institutions or political positions within Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh, and South Ossetia. This does not imply a position on their status.