DUSHANBE, September 21, 2015, Asia-Plus – Russian media outlets report that Tajik national living in Russia’s Sakha (Yakutia) Republic has been jailed for supporting terrorism.
According to
Interfax
, Tajik national living in Yakutia has been sentenced to five years in prison for supporting the Taliban terrorist group.
The Federal Security Service (FSB)’s office in Yakutia has been quoted as saying that criminal proceedings have been sentenced against the man under Article 205 (1) of Russia’s Penal Code – support for terrorism.
The investigation has reportedly established that he had been in correspondence with one of activists of the Talban movement fighting against the government forces in Pakistan by email.
In his letters, the Taliban activist reportedly asked him to provide financial assistance to organize “jihad” against “infidels” in Afghanistan and Pakistan and also to assist with creating underground terrorist structures in Yakutia.
The man had repeatedly sent money to suborned banking accounts of the terrorist organization in Pakistan, FSB’s office in Yakutia was quoted as saying by
Interfax
.
Both Tajikistan and Russian designated the Taliban as a terrorist organization.
The Taliban is an Islamic fundamentalist political movement in Afghanistan. It spread throughout Afghanistan and formed a government, ruling as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan from September 1996 until December 2001, with Kandahar as the capital. Mohammed Omar was the founder and served as the spiritual leader of the Taliban from its foundation in 1994 until his death in 2013. Mullah Akhtar Mansoor was elected as his replacement in 2015.
After the September 11 attacks, the Taliban were overthrown by the American-led invasion of Afghanistan. Later it regrouped as an insurgency movement to fight the American-backed Karzai administration and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). The Taliban have been accused of using terrorism as a specific tactic to further their ideological and political goals. According to the United Nations, the Taliban and their allies were responsible for 75% of Afghan civilian casualties in 2010, 80% in 2011, and 80% in 2012
