QURGHON TEPPA, January 28, 2013, Asia-Plus — Six alleged activists of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) have been detained in the Qubodiyon district, Khatlon province.
In a report released at a news conference in the district administrative center, Qubodiyon chairperson Abdulmumin Ulfatov said on January 28 that over the past two months, six residents of the village of Qizil Nishon have been arrested on suspicion of active membership in the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.
“Last year, five residents of the Qizil Nishon village were detained and convicted for membership in the IMU,” Ulfatov told journalists.
According to him, local authorities have set up a special working group to carry out explanatory work among the population.
“Members of the group have held meetings with parents of those, who are suspected of membership in the IMU,” said Ulfatov. “Those young people, who took special training at illegal religious schools abroad, have listened to their parents.”
The Qubodiyon chairperson assured that the situation is under control of law enforcement authorities.
The IMU, which says it wants to establish an Islamic caliphate in Central Asia, has been banned in Tajikistan and other Central Asian countries. It has moved its operations to neighboring Afghanistan in recent years. Tajikistan saw a spike in militant activity in 2010 that led to the deaths of dozens of troops.
