Russian 'rendition': Kremlin grabs opposition figure from Ukraine streets

Analysts worry that Leonid Razvozzhayev's alleged kidnapping from a Kiev street and subsequent imprisoning is start of a full-scale, no-holds-barred crackdown by Putin's Kremlin.

Sochi Olympics Provide the West with Leverage in Dealings with Russia

On September 23, Circassian activists staged worldwide public protests in support of Syria’s Circassians. Activists took to the streets in several Turkish cities, in Germany and in the United States. In the North Caucasus, protests were held in Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Maikop, Adygea. In Moscow and Sukhumi, Abkhazia, protest actions were held jointly by Circassian and Abkhaz activists (http://www.ekhokavkaza.com/content/article/24718732.html). The activists demanded that Moscow assist Syrian Circassians who have been caught up in Syria’s civil conflict by repatriating them to the North Caucasus. The Circassians originally ended up in Syria following the Russian conquest of the North Caucasus in the 19^th century. The Russian government killed and expelled an estimated 90 percent of the Circassians from the North Caucasus as it wanted to effectively Russify the strategically important Black Sea coast ...