Dec 6, 2022
The third annual International Religious Freedom (IRF) Summit will be held in Washington, DC on January 31-February 1, 2023. The IRF Summit is an annual civil society conference that seeks to create a coalition of organizations to work together to advance international religious freedom, raise public awareness about IRF issues, and increase the political strength of the IRF movement. This year’s IRF Summit will coincide with the National Prayer Breakfast and highlight four distinctive tracks: defending, documenting, developing, and denying. The defending track will focus on the legal, justice, and accountability aspects of freedom of religion or belief; the documenting track will highlight the importance of journalism and gathering evidence; the developing track will examine and develop advocacy efforts and highlight country-level achievements; lastly, the denying track will highlight victims who have been persecuted on the basis of their religion or belief.
Peter Burns, Executive Director of the IRF Summit since its inception in 2021, joins us today to provide some insight into the upcoming IRF Summit.
Additional Name(s): Мухамадеев Ленар Зуфарович
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Russia
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Sentence: 12 Years' Imprisonment
Date of Detainment: November/5/2020
Date of Sentencing: September/13/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Attending a Religious Gathering or Meeting Discussing Religion & Religious Texts Religious Activity Religious Association
Nature of Charges: Banned Organization Terrorism
Lenar Mukhamadeev is imprisoned for his religious association and activity.
On November 5, 2020, authorities in Kazan arrested several people, including Mukhamadeev, for allegedly being members of the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir organization. Authorities accused them of holding meetings, studying religious literature, and recruiting other Muslims to join the organization. Mukhamadeev was charged with “participating in the activities of an organization…recognized as terrorist” (Art. 205.5-2 RCC) and "recruiting persons for the activities of a terrorist organization" (Art. 205.1-1 RCC).
On September 13, 2022, the Central District Military Court sentenced Mukhamadeev to 12 years in prison.
Mukhamadeev is married with one child.
Related Cases: Rail Abdrakhmanov, Vyacheslav Vankov, Ilsur Galeev
"Казанское дело 4 о членстве в запрещённой «Хизб ут-Тахрир»" Political Prisoners. Memorial
"Мы считаем политзаключёнными четырёх мусульман из Казани" Political Prisoners. Memorial
"Четверо казанцев осуждены за причастность к 'Хизб ут-Тахрир'" SOVA Center
Additional Name(s): Ваньков Вячеслав Евгеньевич
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Russia
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: No
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Sentence: 18 Years' Imprisonment
Date of Detainment: November/5/2020
Date of Sentencing: September/13/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Attending a Religious Gathering or Meeting Discussing Religion & Religious Texts Religious Activity Religious Association
Nature of Charges: Banned Organization Illicit Financing Terrorism
Vyacheslav Vankov is imprisoned for his religious association and activity.
On November 5, 2020, authorities in Kazan arrested several people, including Vankov, for allegedly being members of the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir organization. Authorities accused them of holding meetings, studying religious literature, and recruiting other Muslims to join the organization. Vankov was charged with "organizing the activities of an organization…recognized as terrorist" (Art. 205.5-1 RCC), “participating in the activities of an organization…recognized as terrorist” (Art. 205.5-2 RCC), and "financing terrorist activities" (Art. 205.1-1 RCC).
On September 13, 2022, the Central District Military Court sentenced Vankov to 18 years in prison.
Related Cases: Rail Abdrakhmanov, Lenar Mukhamadeev, Ilsur Galeev
"Казанское дело 4 о членстве в запрещённой «Хизб ут-Тахрир»" Political Prisoners. Memorial
"Мы считаем политзаключёнными четырёх мусульман из Казани" Political Prisoners. Memorial
"Четверо казанцев осуждены за причастность к 'Хизб ут-Тахрир'" SOVA Center