Moscow Court Sentences Four Members Of Hizb Ut-Tahrir

A Russian court has handed down sentences to four members of a banned Islamic group.

The Moscow City Court on July 30, sentenced four men from Tajikistan and Russia's North Caucasus Republic of Daghestan to prison terms ranging from 7 to 11 years.

The men were found guilty of being members of the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir group, planning to use violence to overthrow Russia's constitutional structures, and illegally obtaining and possessing weapons and explosives.

The convicted men represented different social groups, from jobless citizens to a dentist.

Hizb ut-Tahrir is a London-based Sunni political organization that seeks to unite all Muslim countries into an Islamic caliphate.

Russia's Supreme Court banned the group in 2003, branding its members and supporters as "extremists."

 

Based on reporting by Interfax and ITAR-TASS