The Border Guard Committee of Belarus said on August 5 that it has detained a Turkmenistan-born Swedish man and is preparing to extradite the former journalist back to Turkmenistan.
Committee member Alyaksandr Tishchenko told the Associated Press that Chary Annamuradov was detained in July as he flew into Belarus because his name was on a wanted list shared by several former Soviet republics.
Annamuradov, a former journalist who investigated drug trafficking between Europe and Afghanistan through Turkmenistan and Russia, was sentenced to 18 years in prison in Turkmenistan in 1991 on charges of drug possession.
Rights groups have said the charges against him were politically motivated.
Annamuradov was released from prison after serving several years of his sentence and fled Turkmenistan.
He lived briefly in Prague, where he worked for the Turkmen Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Annamuradov then moved to Sweden, where he was granted political asylum in 2002.
He also reportedly worked as a correspondent for Deutsche Welle under a pseudonym.
In 2015, Freedom House listed Turkmenistan among the worst offenders of jailing journalists and tightening media controls.
Editors' Picks
Top Trending
1
In Russia's War Economy, The Warning Lights Are Blinking
2Attack From Afghanistan Kills Chinese National In Tajikistan, Sources Say
3RFE/RL Reveals Chilling New Details Of Bucha Massacre As Ukraine Marks 1,000 Days Of War
4Putin Says Russia Fired New Intermediate Missile At Ukraine After ICBM Accusations
5Could U.S. Long-Range Missiles Tip The Balance In The Ukraine War?
6Wider Europe Briefing: Georgia's Vanishing EU Dreams
7Steps Too Far As Moscow, Washington Cross 'Red Lines' Over Ukraine?
8Ukraine Live Briefing: Verkhovna Rada Closes Over Strike Fears
9At Least 21 Dead In Russian Missile Strikes In Ukraine's Odesa, Sumy
10The Far-Right Firebrand Too Dangerous To Run For Romania's Presidency
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.
To find out more, click here.
