Special services detained 13 believers near Nizhny Novgorod

During a special operation of special services in the Nizhny Novgorod region, at least 13 believers were detained. One of them, 48-year-old Alexei Oreshkov, is still in the temporary detention facility. Another is under house arrest. The fate of the rest is being investigated.

Mass searches and detentions in Nizhny Novgorod, the cities of Pavlovo and Bor (Nizhny Novgorod region) took place on July 16 and 17, 2019. The security forces invaded the homes of believers, seized computer equipment and electronic drives. In some cases, special forces soldiers laid the residents of the house "face to face", saying: "We know everything about you."

Peaceful meetings of believers who adhere to the doctrine of Jehovah's Witnesses are inappropriately interpreted by security officials throughout Russia as a continuation of the activities of banned religious organizations. This is despite the clearly articulated position of the authorities that the decision of the Russian Supreme Court to ban Russian organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses "does not contain a restriction or prohibition to practice the above teachings individually."