Another activist of the “Group 24” has been detained in Turkey

Political activist and member of “Group 24” Firuz Boboev has been detained by Turkish law enforcement for the second time.

According to the website of the political movement “Group 24,” activist and member Firuz Boboev, better known as Zaid Boboev, was placed in a deportation center on January 23 of this year. His lawyer is currently trying to prevent his deportation to Tajikistan.

The “Group 24” activist was detained despite having a temporary residence permit in Turkey, where he has been living as a political refugee since 2016 and has been registered as a political refugee with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees since 2018.

The political movement “Group 24” has called on all human rights organizations, human rights advocacy groups, and democratic countries to intervene in this matter as soon as possible and to make every effort to secure the release of Firuz Boboev. Turkey is not a country where dissenters can seek asylum, and Boboev could be deported to Tajikistan at any moment, where he faces a lengthy prison sentence, the organization’s statement notes.

It is reported that he was first detained in Turkey at the request of Tajik authorities on August 3, 2024, and was held for two months in a deportation center in the city of Çanakkale.

Additionally, earlier in this country, the leader of the political movement “Group 24” and a high-ranking member of this organization were detained and deported to Tajikistan. The leader of the political movement “Group 24,” Suhrob Zafar, went missing in Istanbul on the morning of March 10, 2024. Activist and member of “Group 24,” representative of this organization in Turkey Nasimjon Sharifov also went missing on February 23, 2024. Initially, nothing was known about their whereabouts.

After almost six months, on August 9, the Attorney General of Tajikistan Yusuf Rahmon announced at a press conference that Suhrob Zafar and Nasimjon Sharifov are in Dushanbe, the investigation into their case is nearly complete, and the case will be sent to court. However, the Attorney General did not explain how they ended up in Tajikistan or what charges have been brought against them.

In October of last year, the Dushanbe city court sentenced the leader of “Group 24,” Suhrob Zafar, to 30 years in prison, while his associate, Nasimjon Sharifov, was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment.

Both activists were abducted in Turkey—a country where the founder and leader of “Group 24,” Umarali Kuvvatov, was killed in 2015.