Ashirov says terrorism has no nationality

Additional Reporting By Damir Ahmad, IOL Correspondent

MOSCOW, March 6 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – Russian police raided Friday, March 5, mosques in the Russian capital Moscow, arresting at least 18 people under the pretext of foiling “terrorist operations”.

The swoops were carried out by security personnel from the feared Ministry of Internal Affairs and Federal Security Services after Friday Prayers.

The forces checked the identities of dozens of worshippers after they stepped out the mosques’ doors, arresting 18 people at least.

Ahmad Ganov, imam of one of the raided mosques, described as “serious” the incident which enveloped all mosques in the Russian capital.

A spokesman for the Interior Ministry claimed that the “campaign” proved successful and led to the arrest of people directly or indirectly involved in “terrorist operations” like the underground train blast earlier in the month.

A powerful explosion ripped through a packed underground train in Moscow in morning rush-hour on February 6, killing at least 40 people and injuring more than 100.

“In order to prevent terrorist and extremist acts, we conducted work in a series of religious sites,” Agence France-Presse (AFP) quoted Nikolai Pershutkin as saying.

“The ensuing results have exceeded all expectations,” he added.

Legal Action

For his part, the head of Moscow’s Mosque League told the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper that Russian Muslims will take their case to court.

He said the raids try to bracket Islam with terrorism and have everything to do with the upcoming Presidential elections in Russia.

The March 14 poll is expected to be overwhelmingly won by incumbent Vladimir Putin.

He hit out at Russian security forces for tarnishing the image of Muslims in the eyes of the Russian people.

Russian federal forces launched similar raids on February 27 and rounded up at least 84 people.

The Mufti of Asian Section of Russia, sheikh Nafigulla Ashirov, said at a press conference on March 3, that the detainees had been treated as if they were terrorists.

Asserting that Russian’s Muslims are not terrorists and that terrorism has no nationality, Ashirov said the Russian authorities released 70 of the detainees.

Russia has a Muslim population of 20 million people concentrated in north of the Caucasus and central Russia.