Kevin Daniel Leahy

On Oct. 30, Murat Zyazikov resigned as president of Ingushetia -- a small, mainly Muslim republic in Russia's North Caucasus region. Zyazikov's fate was likely sealed two weeks previously, when a military convoy was ambushed by insurgents, leaving approximately 50 servicemen dead. The ambush was the largest of its type yet seen in the republic and is an illustration of how an insurgency that once drew its inspiration from its counterparts in neighboring Chechnya has become increasingly active in its own right. more

On June 12, Irish voters will go to the polls to say "yea" or "nay" to the proposed Lisbon Treaty. To say that the Irish electorate has been unenthusiastic about the debate on this treaty would be an understatement. But the campaign amounts to a baptism of fire for Ireland's taoiseach, or prime minister, Brian Cowen, who assumed office in May following the departure of his controversial predecessor, Bertie Ahern. Cowen himself has spearheaded the "yes" campaign. more

To look at him, one would never suspect that Vladislav Surkov was once a special operations agent in the Red Army's intelligence corps. A svelte, retiring figure, Surkov, 42, usually shies away from the public spotlight. When he does give interviews or make public appearances, therefore, it commonly occasions a media frenzy. Attempts to slice through the veil of mystery shrouding this high-placed presidential aide assume particular urgency because, by some estimates, Surkov is the second most influential person in Russian politics. more

Throughout his young political career, Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov has been sneered at because of his rudimentary formal education, his spasmodic grasp of the Russian language, as well as some of the more flamboyant aspects of his personality. Numerous non-governmental organizations, both Russian and Western, accuse his forces, the Kadyrovsty, of committing serious human rights violations against Chechnya's civilian population. But Kadryov has skillfully leveraged the political patronage of Vladimir Putin to his advantage.
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The religious topography of the North Caucasus can no longer be reduced to a simple theological contest between Sufi traditionalists and Islamists. Increasingly, ideological schisms are emerging within the Islamist constituency itself, which Moscow rather ambiguously labels the "Wahhabi" community. A case in point: the little-known but restive region of south Russia known as Kabardino-Balkaria, where a fierce ideological battle that appears to favor a radical Islamic constituency holds the key to the area's future.
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