In Surkhandarya, four members of an extremist group received prison sentences. Video

In the Surkhandarya region, four members of an extremist group have been sentenced to prison terms.

In the Surkhandarya region, the activities of a group of young people who succumbed to extremist ideas and intended to travel to a war zone were stopped. The court convicted all participants, handing them lengthy prison terms.

It was established that a 23-year-old resident of the Sariasiysky district went to Makhachkala in 2023 to find work. There, he became close with an acquaintance nicknamed "Mukhammad" and, influenced by radical content on social media, changed his views. They later recruited a 21-year-old fellow countryman into their plans and began preparing to leave for Syria.

To make the trip, one of them, without permission, took some of the money his family had saved abroad. The group traveled from Makhachkala to Moscow, planning to fly on to Istanbul and then to Syria. However, a conflict erupted between them in the Russian capital, after which the two returned. Their accomplice, Muhammad, later committed a murder in Kazan and was prosecuted under Russian law.

Meanwhile, a 21-year-old member was deported to Uzbekistan and sentenced to seven years on extremism charges. Despite this, the group's activities continued: two more natives of the Sariasiysky district, aged 27 and 25, joined. They disseminated the ideas of terrorist organizations and discussed participating in military operations.

In 2025, their activity intensified; according to investigators, they planned to commit crimes against law enforcement officers in Makhachkala. They also attempted to recruit another young man to the group online.

The group was detained in a joint operation by the State Security Service of Uzbekistan and Russian law enforcement. During the investigation, evidence gathered confirmed the suspects' involvement in the alleged crimes.

The Sariasi District Court found four defendants guilty of terrorism and extremism-related charges and sentenced each to eight years and six months in prison.

As a reminder, Uzbekistan plans to create an electronic registry of extremist organizations and materials. A law aimed at improving counter-extremism legislation was approved by the Senate.