KHUJAND, December 26, 2013, Asia-Plus — H.I., 30, from the northern city of Istaravashan has got a long jail term for membership in the outlawed religious extremist group Jamaat Ansarullah.
The Khujand city court sentenced H.I. to 10 years and six months in prison on December 25. H.I. is charged with organizing an illegal armed formation (Article 185 of Tajikistan’s Penal Code), organizing a criminal group (Article 187), illegal possession of weapons (Article 195), preparation for a crime (Article 32), conspiring to use force against the state (Article 306), organizing an extremist group (Article 307), and not reporting a crime (Article 347).
Jamaat Ansarullah, also known as the Society of Allah’s Soldiers, first came to light in September 2010 when the heretofore unknown organization claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on September 3 in Khujand. An explosives-packed car rammed into the building of the organized crime department of the regional police, killing two officers and two civilians and wounding 28 people. The suicide bomber was local resident Akmal Karimov, who was reportedly trained in al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
In September 2011, Jamaat Ansarullah issued several videos calling on Tajikistan’s citizens to embrace jihad against “infidels” and urging them to take action to support the implementation of Islamic Sharia law. “Those who pray namaz, who follow fasting rules but support democracy are nonbelievers,” a man on the video said. “Allah is killing nonbelievers by our hands and, thus, blesses us.” Some politicians and experts, however, doubt whether these videos can really be traced back to Jamaat Ansarullah.
In May 2012, Tajikistan’s Supreme Court officially banned Jamaat Ansarullah as extremist on the basis of a suit filed by the Prosecutor-General’s Office.
