Ingush president to return to work by mid-August

President of Ingushetia may return to work in two weeks’ time. Yunus-Bek Yevkurov was seriously wounded in a suicide bomb attack last month.

At a media-conference on Friday, the acting president of the republic, Rashid Gaisanov, said Yevkurov is feeling better and will soon be moved from the intensive care ward to a regular one. Gaisanov expects him to return to office by mid-August.

Yunus-Bek Yevkurov was attacked on June 22 near Nazran. His convoy drove past a suicide bomber who detonated a car packed with explosives.

Yevkurov was critically injured in the attack, and spent more then a week in a coma.

The Ingush leader celebrated his 46th birthday this Thursday. He was visited by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who presented Yevkurov with a small box with a dagger inside. According to tradition, the leader of the Caucasian republic responded by repaying him with a small coin.

Yunus-Bek Yevkurov said he manages to keep an eye on the situation in his republic from Moscow by telephone.

Following the assassination attempt, Ingushetia and neighboring Chechnya launched a counter-terrorist operation that is still ongoing.