Three Suspected Terrorists Detained In Sverdlovsk

Three members of a banned Islamic group have been detained in Russia's Sverdlovsk Oblast.

The Prosecutor-General's Office in the Urals Federal District said on October 16 that the apprehended men are members of the Islamic Party of Turkestan (IPT). Investigators say they found guns, munitions, explosives, and drugs at the detainees' home in the Sverdlovsk region.

The IPT, which is also known as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, is believed to have links to Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants. It has been banned in Russia and Central Asia and is on the U.S. State Department's list of foreign terrorist organizations.

Security forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan have clashed with IPT militants in recent months.

Based on reporting by ITAR-TASS and "Rossiyskaya gazeta"