Russia extradited five more residents of Yazgulom to Tajikistan

Russian security forces detained five citizens of Tajikistan, natives of the Yozgulom jamoat in the Vanj district, and handed them over to Dushanbe.

A source from Radio Ozodi, speaking on condition of anonymity, reported on June 17 that all five are residents of the Andarbak village in the Yozgulom jamoat and are accused of “membership in an extremist organization.” According to him, they were detained in Russia at the end of May and extradited to Tajikistan last week.

On May 16, employees of the State National Security Committee of Tajikistan detained over 30 residents of the Yozgulom jamoat in the Vanj district on suspicion of “preparing a diversion.” The authorities have not officially commented on these and other detentions in western GBAO, however, sources from Radio Ozodi reported that some of the detainees are suspected of collaborating with extremist groups in Afghanistan.

Sources from Radio Ozodi stated that the extradited residents of Yozgulom are accused of collaborating with a group of their fellow countrymen detained in May. It has not been possible to obtain comments from the detainees or their relatives regarding the charges brought against them.

In the past month, this is the second case where residents of Yozgulom have been extradited from Russia to Tajikistan. At the beginning of June, sources from Radio Ozodi reported the extradition of four young residents of Yozgulom from St. Petersburg.

One local official in Vanj told Radio Ozodi on June 5 that some of the detainees “arrived in Yozgulom from Afghanistan” and, according to some reports, they allegedly made a weapons cache in the mountains. However, he did not provide any evidence to support his claims.

Yozgulom is a jamoat in the Vanj district of GBAO, which borders Afghanistan. Previously, officials stated that dozens of residents from this jamoat had joined extremist groups abroad. According to residents of Yozgulom, it is a remote region and most of its inhabitants do not have either stable jobs or a settled life.