Photo: raid on believers in the Nizhny Novgorod region (July 2019)
Mass operation against believers in the Nizhny Novgorod region
Nizhegorod RegionOn the evening of July 16 and the morning of July 17, 2019, about 10 searches were carried out in the homes of believers in Nizhny Novgorod and the city of Pavlovo (Nizhny Novgorod region), and equipment was seized. In at least one case, security forces forced civilians to lie on the floor. Men and women have been detained, and interrogations are underway.
The last time Nizhny Novgorod security officials put pressure on those who hold the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses was more than two years ago, even before the Supreme Court's decision to ban 396 organizations of believers came into force. Then the special services disrupted the worship service and planted a brochure included in the list of extremist materials.
Update. In total, searches were carried out in 31 families of Nizhny Novgorod believers. 5 criminal cases were initiated against 7 men and 2 women. Persecution of faith is carried out by employees of the Nizhny Novgorod regional police department together with employees of the regional department of the FSB. Force support was provided by the SOBR of the regional department of the Russian Guard.