600 inhabitants of three Dagestan villages block federal thruway

DAGESTAN, December 23, Caucasus Times – Angry residents of the villages of Endirei, Actash and Novosasitly of Khasavyurtovsky district rallied at the site to protest abduction of eight locals, the organizers of the action said in their interview with Caucasus Times correspondent. The people were seized, according to protesters, by armed officers in camouflage, who had ID’s of police. They came in cars without numbers plates and abducted eight local men, the angry people were quoted as saying.

The republic’s Interior Ministry said the so-called “police officers” most likely were bandits with phony documents, while the residents of three villages were asserting that the locals were detained by the police, who alleged the men were linked to militants. Just a week ago the villagers sealed off the thruway and posted a picket for several hours.

The Interior Ministry representatives and local authorities negotiating with protesters said they had agreed during yesterday’s meeting with the protesters they would not block the road. Nevertheless, the people rallied at the site again demanding to give them just any information about the abducted local men.

The Khasavyurt district’s administrator, officials of the Interior Ministry and Prosecutor’s Office came to urge the protesters “to end the siege”. As of now, the people do not give ground.