Watchdog

Reports from Turkmenistan say that Major General Tirkish Tyrmyev, the former commander of the country's border forces, has been sentenced to seven more years in prison.

Tyrmyev was sentenced to 10 years in jail in 2002 after being convicted of abuse of power.

Family members tell RFE/RL's Turkmen Service that earlier this year, 10 days before Tyrmyev's sentence was due to end, a new criminal case was opened against him, reportedly in connection with a fight with another inmate.

They say Tyrmyev, believed to be in his late 50s, was sentenced to seven more years in jail at a closed-door hearing on March 6.

Members of Tyrmyev's family, who live in Dashoguz Province, say they have not been allowed to see him or communicate with him since the summer of 2002. The exact location of his imprisonment is not known.

"We don’t know anything about [his health]," a close relative who did not wish to be identified told RFE/RL. "That’s why we are asking the authorities to allow us to send him [basic necessities]. We are asking them to create an option for us where we can communicate with him and send and receive letters.”

MOSCOW -- A Moscow court has extended the pretrial detention of three female punk rockers arrested after a protest performance in Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral.

The three members of the Pussy Riot band were arrested after their group attempted to stage a performance against Prime Minister and President-elect Vladimir Putin inside the Orthodox church in February.

They face up to seven years in jail on charges of hooliganism.

Their original pretrial detention was to end on April 24. No date has been set for the trial.

Supporters of the band, including prominent artists, musicians and activists, tried to organize a protest event outside the court. Critics of the punk group were also at the site.

RFE/RL’s correspondent says there were scuffles between the two groups and that the police detained at least 30 people.

Lyudmila Alekseyeva, the head of Moscow's Helsinki Group, said the women did not deserve such lengthy detention and must be freed.

With reporting by AP and Interfax