Allegations of Ethnic Cleansing
According to Helsinki Human Rights Watch, war crimes and ethnic cleansing were committed by Ossetian police and republican guards against Ingush civilians. Human Rights Watch collected numerous video and photo materials showing extreme brutality carried out by Ossetian police and republican guards against Ingush inhabitants of the district. Helsinki Watch published its report on human rights violations and war crimes, with detailed description of massacres of the Ingush civilians during the events of October and November, in April 1996.
The pressure from Moscow and the Russian-mediated Ossetian-Ingush agreement of 1995 induced the North Ossetian authorities to allow Ingush refugees from four settlements in the Prigorodny district to return to their homes. The return of most refugees had been blocked by the local government and only the Ossetians had been able to return since. Meanwhile, the former Ingush homes and settlements in the district have been gradually occupied by the Ossetian refugees from Georgia.
On October 11, 2002, the presidents of Ingushetia and North Ossetia signed the agreement for "promoting cooperation and neighbourly relations" between the republics, in which Ingush refugees and human rights advocates invested much hope. However, the Beslan hostage crisis of 2004 hampered the return process and worsened Ossetian-Ingush relations.
Read more about this topic: East Prigorodny Conflict
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