DUSHANBE, November 16, 2012, Asia-Plus — Russian law enforcement authorities have brought an official charge of terrorism against nine alleged activists of the outlawed religious extremist Hizb ut-Tahrir group detained in Moscow. The arrested suspects are citizens of Russia and Tajikistan.
Russian news agency, RIA Novosti, reports that five of those detained have been identified as heads of Hizb ut-Tahrir”s cells in Moscow and othe rRussian regions.
They were reportedly detained by officers from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) in Moscow on November 7.
During a search of the suspects’ premises, security officers reportedly found ten hand grenades, two sawn-off guns and six TNT cartridges, as well as guides to recruiting people and promoting radical Islam.
According to Russian media reports, up to 70 Hizb ut-Tahrir activists detained were detained in Moscow and the Moscow region in early November. On November 6 alone, the FSB officers detained 10 alleged members of the banned group in Ufa, the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan.
Hizb ut-Tahrir – an international Sunni pan-Islamic political organization established in 1953 – is outlawed for extremism in Russia and in the territories of other members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The group is active in the EU, the US and several Arabic and Central Asian countries.
In Tajikistan, the Supreme Court formally labeled the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir Islamist group as an extremist organization on March 11, 2008. The ruling followed a request submitted to the court by Tajik chief prosecutor. Although the group has been outlawed in Tajikistan since April 2001, the ruling means even tighter restrictions on the group”s presence on the Internet and its use of media to promote its ideology.
