The Georgian Foreign Ministry has criticized statements made by the European Union regarding legal proceedings that could lead to the banning of five opposition parties. The ministry issued its response following comments made on October 19 by European Commission spokesperson Christian Wigand.
The Association «Vaifonda» has received a notification from the Commission for the Control of Files of Interpol on the withdrawal of Dagestan preacher Israel Akhmednabiyev, better known as Abu Umar Sashilinsky, from the international search. The Commission concluded that the political or religious objectives prevailed in the Ahmednabiyev case and therefore did not satisfy the requirements of article 3 of the Interpol Statute. There are also witnesses in the case file who testified under torture.
Russian security forces believe that Sasittlinsky financed the banned ISIS organization, but he himself denies these allegations. Earlier, the Southern District Court in Rostov sentenced his brother Saada Akhmednabiyev to 16.5 years of a strict regime colony. He was accused of aiding and abetting terrorism.