Jehovah's Witness From Russia Arrested In Belarus For First Time

Russia has put the man on the international wanted list because of his faith.

Belarusian law enforcement officers have detained a Jehovah's Witness from Russia. According to the religious association's website, this is the first case in the history of Belarus, when a Jehovah's Witness, who is persecuted for his faith in Russia, was arrested, Belsat reports.

On February 21, 36-year-old Russian Nikolai Makhalichev was detained for checking documents. After that, he was told that Russia had declared him on the international wanted list, as he professes an allegedly banned religion. The believer ended up in a temporary detention center in Haradok.

Three days later, the prosecutor sent him to SIZO-2 in Vitsebsk. The decree notes that Makhalichev acted "deliberately, on the grounds of religious intolerance, out of extremist motives, expressed in propaganda of the religious teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses to others ...", and was also engaged in "confessing and spreading ideology and faith".

The believer considers the detention order illegal and is going to appeal against it in the Belarusian court. He also filed a complaint with the UN Committee on Human Rights.

Earlier there was no information about detention of Jehovah's Witnesses from Russia in Belarus.

The criminal case against Makhalichev was initiated in Russia in Khanty Mansiisk Autonomous District on January 31, 2019.

The Jehovah's Witnesses is an international religious organization with millions of supporters all over the world, including Belarus.