May 5, 2021 Find out more News News Help by sharing this information ———29 august 2006Conflicting reports about kidnapped journalist’s links to recently killed warlordThe head of the Russian human rights organisation Memorial, Svetlana Gannushkina, voiced caution yesterday about a “rumour” that kidnapped Chechen journalist Elina Ersenoyeva had been secretly married to Shamil Basayev, the Chechen separatist warlord who was killed in an explosion last month.“An atmosphere of sensationalist rumours has been created around the kidnapping of Elina Ersenoyeva,” Gannushkina wrote in a letter to Russian prosecutor-general Yuri Chaika. “Spread by irresponsible people, these rumours about links between Elina and Shamil Basayev could lead her kidnappers to do something dangerous.”Taissa Issayeva, the head of a Chechen organisation, last week told a Russian radio station that Ersenoyeva “was Basayev’s last wife” and that he “used her to post information on the Chechen separatist site Kavkacenter.” Listed as a “foreign agent”, Russia’s most popular independent website risks disappearing September 7, 2006 – Updated on January 20, 2016 Concern over plight of missing journalist Russian media boss drops the pretence and defends Belarus crackdown May 21, 2021 Find out more News Follow the news on Russia June 2, 2021 Find out more
to go further RussiaEurope – Central Asia Receive email alerts RSF_en Reporters Without Borders expressed concern today over the fate of journalist Elina Ersenoyeva, kidnapped three weeks ago in the Chechen capital, Grozny, and urged the authorities to make every effort to find her. The worldwide press freedom organisation said it feared she had been mistreated since confirmation of her marriage to former rebel chieftain Shamil Bassayev, who was killed in July. Nothing has been heard of her since she was seized in the street by gunmen on 17 August.Chechnya’s assistant prosecutor, Nikolai Kalugin, says he was not officially told of the kidnapping until 25 August, when he asked officials in Grozny to make “necessary enquiries.” It is thought Ersenoyeva may have been seized because of her links with the pro-independence rebels. She worked as a freelance for the opposition paper Chechenskoye Obshchestvo and the day before she disappeared had asked for help to leave the country because she had been threatened. Two Russian journalists persecuted for investigating police corruption Organisation RussiaEurope – Central Asia ———24 august 2006Gunmen kidnap newspaper reporter in downtown GroznyReporters Without Borders voiced concern today about the kidnapping of reporter Elina Ersenova of the daily Chechenskoye Obshchestvo, who was abducted by gunmen on Kadyrov Avenue in the centre of Grozny on 17 August.“We call on the Chechen and Russian authorities to do everything possible to get Ersenova freed as soon as possible,” the press freedom organisation said. “The mobilisation must be immediate and massive.”Witnesses said Ersenova and her aunt were kidnapped by gunmen aboard two cars who put bags over their heads and bundled them into their cars. They released her aunt a few hours later.Chechenskoye Obshchestvo editor Timur Aliev said Ersenova used her mobile phone to call her mother on the evening of the same day, saying her kidnappers had promised to release her. Since then, the family has received no further word from her and her mobile phone has been turned off.Two days before her abduction, Ersenova wrote to the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights to say she, her mother and her two brothers were being harassed by members of the security forces working for Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov.Ersenova’s reporting focused on the social problems encountered by the Chechen population. Her most recent story was about conditions in Grozny prison. News
Concern over plight of missing journalist
June 12, 2021
On Sunday, following New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival2019’s final day, Dumpstaphunk made their way to Tipitina‘s for a special late-night performance. Up-and-coming guitar virtuoso Marcus King was the evening’s featured guest, joining the band for a series of covers and impressive improvisational exploration.Dumpstaphunk—comprised of Ivan Neville, Ian Neville, Tony Hall, Nick Daniels III, and Alvin Ford Jr.—opened up their show with a full-throttle double bass duel between Tony and Nick. Following approximately an hour of Dumpstaphunk’s firey-hot funk jams, the band invited up Marcus King for the remainder of their main set. With the addition of King, the funk warriors worked through “I’d Rather Be (Blind, Crippled and Crazy)”, a soul tune originally recorded in 1973 by O.V. Wright. Dumpstaphunk and King moved forward with choice covers, including B.B. King‘s “It’s My Own Fault”, the Allman Brothers Band‘s “Don’t Keep Me Wonderin’”, and a set-closing take on Led Zepplin‘s “Ramble On”.Watch pro-shot video of Dumpstaphunk’s Tipitina’s performance featuring special guest Marcus King below:Dumpstaphunk – Tipitina’s – 5/5/2019[Video: nugsnet]Next up for Dumpstaphunk is a performance at The Charleston Pour House in Charleston, SC on Thursday, May 23rd. A few weeks later, Dumpstaphunk will hit the road with George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic as a featured support act on the band’s expansive One Nation Under A Groove farewell tour. For a full list of Dumpstaphunk’s upcoming tour dates and ticketing information, head to the band’s website.
Update on the latest sports March 22, 2020 The United States governing bodies of swimming and track — two of the three top-tier Summer Games sports — have called on their national Olympic officials to push for a postponement.VIRUS OUTBREAK-SPORTSJays’ Shapiro expects 4-week spring training before seasonUNDATED (AP) — Toronto Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro says he thinks Major League Baseball would need at least a month of workouts and exhibition games before regular season play can begin.Opening day has been postponed until at least mid-May because of the coronavirus pandemic. Shapiro cautioned that training camps aren’t likely to open for some time because of the coronavirus outbreak. All but three of Toronto’s major league players have left the team’s spring training site in Dunedin, Florida. Shapiro says no Blue Jays players or staff have displayed any symptoms of the new coronavirus, and that no one has been tested.Shapiro spoke to reporters on Sunday from his home in Toronto.In other virus-related developments:— The St. Louis Blues say a relative of a team employee has tested positive for COVID-19. The person is in self-isolation along with members of the person’s family, according to the team. All Blues staff who may have come into close contact with the employee have been notified. The team says it is asking for all members of the Blues to remain isolated, monitor their health and seek advice from team medical staff.— Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac announced he is teaming up with J.U.M.P. Ministries Global Church to provide hot breakfasts and lunches to school kids age 18 and under on weekdays for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic. Isaac also says he’ll be helping families obtain boxes of non-perishable food items once a week, things like oatmeal and cereal and instant rice. He says the breakfasts and lunches will be grab-and-go style, and a nurse will be on site for the pickups. Issac says, “We cannot just sit on our hands while this is going on.” — Hours after the Australian government called for its citizens to cancel all non-essential travel, the Australian rules Australian Football League announced it was postponing its seasons until May 31. Australia’s various football leagues were among the few remaining professional sports playing on across the globe in its attempts to halt the spread of the virus.— The $12 million Dubai World Cup, the world’s richest purse in horse racing, will be postponed until next year. That’s according to an announcement from the Dubai Media Office, a governmental agency. Officials had planned to run the race March 28 without spectators over concerns about the new coronavirus and the COVID-19 illness it causes.,Tampa Bay Lightning advance to face Dallas Stars in Stanley Cup finals, beating New York Islanders 2-1 in OT in Game 6
Associated Press In a statement Sunday, the IOC says it will hold four weeks of discussions with global sports officials and Japanese authorities to examine the options. It says the “scenario planning” will include the possibility of changing the July 24 start date for the Games, but that “cancellation is not on the agenda.”The announcement came after IOC President Thomas Bach led a conference call with executive board members.Bach has consistently said organizers are fully committed to opening the games on July 24, even as athlete training, qualifying events and preparations for the Games are being disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.Criticism of that stance has grown in recent days.National Olympic committees in Brazil and Slovenia later called for a postponement to 2021. Norway’s Olympic body said it did want athletes going to Tokyo until the global health crisis is under control. Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditVIRUS OUTBREAK-OLYMPICSIOC to consider postponing Tokyo OlympicsUNDATED (AP) — The International Olympic Committee IOC now says it will consider the possibility of postponing the Tokyo Olympics.