'People no longer want to put up with it': What does ‘family picket’ in South Ossetia signal?
On 26 February, the mother and wife of South Ossetian Interior Ministry Colonel Viktor Margiev staged a protest outside the presidential administration building in Tskhinval. They said they felt compelled to act after unknown individuals allegedly assaulted Viktor Margiev’s son, Igor Margiev, a student at a Russian Interior Ministry university.
According to the Margiev family, the incident is linked to people within the inner circle of South Ossetian President Alan Gagloev, whom they accuse of targeting their family for the past six months.
A controversial claim
The two women arrived at the presidential administration holding placards reading “Stop the criminal gang!” and “Gagloev, stop the lawlessness!”, but were detained by police. They were reportedly taken to one of the security agencies, where, according to relatives, they were pressured to “calm down”.
For much of the day, there was no information about their whereabouts. By the evening, the government news agency Res published a statement claiming that “a domestic family dispute was exploited against the authorities by media outlets recognised in Russia as foreign agents.”
According to Res, President Gagloev later met one of the protesters, Asmat Gigolaeva, the mother of the assaulted student, Igor Margiev.
The agency published a quotation attributed to Gigolaeva.
“Alan Eduardovich received me warmly, listened carefully, and after our conversation representatives of the security agencies contacted me and expressed their full readiness to take lawful measures to protect my son from possible provocations against him,” she was quoted as saying.
However, critics of the authorities argue that such steps are an attempt by Gagloev and his entourage to contain the scandal and limit reputational damage. They note, first, that the quotation published by Res makes no mention of the alleged harassment of Viktor Margiev himself or other members of the family. Secondly, they argue that the case can hardly be described as a “domestic dispute”, but rather concerns a criminal offence allegedly committed by third parties.
“Protests will become more frequent”
Several residents of Tskhinval interviewed by JAMnews said the protest reflected growing public disillusionment with the authorities and a stronger willingness among citizens to defend their rights.
“This government — and Alan Gagloev personally — can no longer control people through threats and intimidation. Viktor’s mother and wife managed to do what Tamara Mearakishvili did not,” one resident said, referring to the ethnic Georgian activist who was arrested on espionage charges and later expelled from South Ossetia.
“They managed to hold their picket before they were detained and taken away.
I think that as the presidential election approaches, protests will become more frequent. Even if they are not large-scale, it is already a sign that people in Tskhinval no longer want to tolerate the permissiveness and impunity of Alik Gagloev and his associates.”
Alik Gagloev and his circle
Alik Gagloev, the brother of President Alan Gagloev, is in some respects a “legendary” figure in South Ossetia. His name has surfaced in connection with a number of high-profile criminal incidents. According to local sources, the Margiev family’s troubles also began “thanks to” people linked to him.
In early September 2025, members of a criminal group allegedly associated with Alik Gagloev abducted Viktor’s brother, Alan Margiev, and under torture demanded that he hand over an expensive car.
Alan managed to escape and reported the incident to the interior ministry and the prosecutor general’s office. After neither agency took what the family described as adequate action, Viktor Margiev recorded a video address in which he said he had previously faced pressure from the authorities after accusing President Alan Gagloev of protecting organised crime.
Viktor claimed that his brother had been kidnapped by the gang of Khokh Gabaraev, described locally as a well-known criminal figure and one of Alik Gagloev’s associates.
According to Viktor Margiev, crimes committed by the group were “encouraged by the president himself, who nurtured this gang”.
He said that the day after his brother’s abduction, he used social media to call on others who had suffered at the hands of Gabaraev’s group not to be afraid and to contact law enforcement.
“Several hours after the post, OMON officers came to my home. Under the pretext of a conversation, they put me in a car. I immediately understood that they wanted to abduct me, and I jumped out of the vehicle and ran into the yard of my house,” Viktor claimed.
He said he then called Atsamaz Bibilov, leader of the opposition United Ossetia party, and asked for help. Bibilov arrived, spoke to the OMON officers and, according to Viktor, somehow persuaded them to leave him alone.
Hope placed in Russia
Shortly after these events, fearing for his life and safety, Viktor Margiev left South Ossetia, promising to appeal to the “relevant Russian authorities to expose the lawlessness taking place”. He argues that such an appeal is justified because most residents of South Ossetia hold Russian citizenship. Formally, he says, the alleged crimes are therefore being committed against Russian citizens, meaning Russian law enforcement agencies can — and should — intervene.
Six months have passed, however, and the situation has not changed. Even after Viktor’s departure, his family says it has continued to face threats from the interior ministry and the presidential administration.
Hoping to secure intervention from Moscow, Viktor Margiev sent an open letter to Sergei Kiriyenko, the first deputy head of Russia’s presidential administration and the Kremlin official overseeing South Ossetia.
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Viktor Margiev’s family stages picket in Tskhinval
