Extradition to Tajikistan most often rhymes with prison. Islamist blogger Farhod Negmatov had barely landed in Dushanbe from Sweden when the local authorities placed him behind bars, we learned on Wednesday, January 8, from relatives of the opponent. This man with a short salt-and-pepper beard was expelled from Sweden accompanied by his three daughters on December 27, 2024, after being refused political asylum. The three minors were handed over to relatives in a village in the north of the country. The Tajik authorities, unresponsive to media requests, have not provided any details on the circumstances of the arrest or the reasons for the incarceration. Farhod Negmatov and his family emigrated to Ukraine in 2019. After the Russian invasion began, the family settled in Sweden, where they faced administrative difficulties. Asylum applications filed by the Negmatovs have repeatedly failed. According to Islam Abu Khalil, a relative of the blogger also living in Sweden, local police arrested Negmatov at his home in Gothenburg on December 27. The Tajik and his daughters were taken directly to the airport. “When Farhod Negmatov and his children arrived in Tajikistan, they were insulted and pressured by the authorities. They were arrested by GKNB agents [services de sécurité tadjiks] at Dushanbe airport. His daughters were released after two days, but he himself remained in detention,” Islam Abu Khalil said on his Facebook page. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers Moscow attack: Tajikistan, the Central Asian country most permeable to ISIS infiltration Read later According to the Tajik branch of Radio Liberty, a media group financed by the United States Congress, Farhod Negmatov is accused of being a member of Hizb Ut-Tahrir, an Islamist political party born from a split with the Muslim Brotherhood, which is banned in Tajikistan, in Russia and several European countries. Those close to Mr. Negmatov say he is being persecuted for criticizing Tajik authorities and for posting videos online supporting the creation of an Islamic caliphate in Central Asia. You have 56.29% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
Source link