Jehovah’s Witnesses Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison in Russia
Rustam Diarov, 48, Yevgeniy Ivanov, 44, and Sergey Klikunov, 46, all Jehovah's Witnesses, were given a sentence of eight year in a Russian prison for "extremist" religious activity. Olga Ivanova, 38, Yevgeniy’s wife, was sentence to 42 months. These sentences are longer than for kidnapping or rape and mark an increased cruelty toward Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia. The sentences have been increasingly longer every year.
Commissioner James W. Carr of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, told The Washington Times in a statement: “These long sentences of eight years for peaceful religious practice are a clear indication of the difficult religious freedom landscape in Russia, which USCIRF has highlighted since 2017 when we first recommended that the State Department designate Russia a Country of Particular Concern. The length of sentences given to Jehovah’s Witnesses has grown steadily since then, and for no apparent reason.”
Source and Photo: Washingtontimes