In Crimea - arson of mosques

The leaders of the Muslim community of Crimea claim that unknown attackers on Tuesday committed arson of the mosque. This is the second arson in recent days. On Monday, the mosque was set on fire in the Crimean city of Saki.

Imam Arsen Yagliev told Radio Liberty/Radio Free Europe that an attempt to arson occurred in the morning in the village of Rozhny. This happened at a time when the Muslims were preparing to celebrate the holiday of Kurban Bayram.

The Mufti of Crimea, Amiral-Haji Ablaev called on local Muslims to remain calm and unite. The incident was the last of the series of attacks on the mosque in the Crimea, including a series of arson and other incidents that have occurred since 2010. No one took responsibility for previous attacks. The Muslim community in Crimea mainly consists of 250 thousand Crimean Tatars, which returned to the region in the late 1980s from Central Asia, where they were forcibly deported by the Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in 1944.

The police are investigating arson. The press secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Olga Theological Freedom/Radio Free Europe told Radio that the authorities opened a criminal case in connection with attacks on the mosque.