Eleven Hizb Ut-Tahrir Suspects Charged In Tajikistan

KHUJAND, Tajikistan -- Tajik police in the northern Soghd province have detained 11 suspected members of the Islamist Hizb ut-Tahrir group, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reports.

Local prosecutors told RFE/RL that those arrested were officially charged with igniting ethnic and racial hatred and attempting to oust the Tajik government.

The officials said the suspects possessed books calling for the overthrow of the government.

Last week seven other locals in Soghd were found guilty of associating with Hizb ut-Tahrir and sentenced to lengthy prison terms.

Hizb ut-Tahrir, which declares a goal of Islamic rule but has officially rejected violence, is banned throughout Central Asia.