Tajik authorities say they have arrested Muslim Sherzamonov, the brother of fugitive opposition politician Alim Sherzamonov, who is wanted for allegedly organizing and financing deadly anti-government protests in the volatile Gorno-Badakhshan region.
The Interior Ministry said that Muslim Sherzamonov was arrested during a special operation to "neutralize" two informal leaders of the restive region, Khursand Mazorov and Zoir Rajabov, on June 12.
According to the ministry, the 56-year-old Sherzamonov was arrested after police found an AK-47 assault rifle, ammunition and two grenades in his possession.
Tajik law enforcement officials on June 12 said Rajabov and Mazorov "ignored demands to surrender" and were "neutralized" during a "special operation."
The Interdepartmental Headquarters for Security and Public Order in Gorno-Badakhshan said in a statement that the two "were officially summoned to law enforcement agencies for interrogation several times, but each time they deliberately refused to comply with the legal requirements of the administrative bodies."
The statement said 10 "accomplices" had been also detained during the operation.
Alim Sherzamonov, who is currently outside of Tajikistan, told RFE/RL that his brother's arrest was politically motivated.
"His only guilt is the fact that he is my brother," he said, adding that the arrest might be linked to his work in the past as an officer of the border guard service, which was under the direct command of a late informal leader of the region, Mahmadboqir Mahmadboqirov.
Mahmadboqirov was killed by security forces last month.
Rajabov and Mazorov were reportedly associates of Imomnazar Imomnazarov, a former field commander who fought against the government in the 1990s Tajik civil war. He was slain in 2012, although the government claims it was not involved in the killing.
Your browser doesn’t support HTML5
Tajikistan Hiding Security Operation In Pamirs From The World
Rajabov and Mazorov, both 50 years old, are considered by many to be civic activists in GBAO, but authorities have regularly referred to them as "leaders of criminal gangs in Khorugh."
Attaining information in the vast but lightly populated area remains difficult due to regular disruptions in Internet and mobile communications.
On June 11, Tajik authorities said three influential figures in the region had been detained, accused of murder and smuggling drugs and weapons among other series crimes.
“As a result of a special operation, the leaders of organized criminal groups of the city of Khorugh -- Talib Ayombekov, Niyozsho Gulobov, and Munavvar Shanbiev -- were detained," local police authorities said in a statement.
The report said all three "are involved in the commission of a number of serious and especially serious crimes such as murder, hooliganism, robbery, smuggling, and illegal trafficking in narcotic drugs, weapons, ammunition and precious stones, the creation of a criminal community, banditry, mass riots, incitement of parochial discord."
The authorities in Tajikistan have made a series of arrests and allegations following violent anti-government protests in mid-May.
It is not clear if the men slain on June 12 or the three detained on June 11 participated in the protests, but they were among about a dozen so-called "informal leaders" or influential figures in the Central Asian republic.
Detainee Ayombekov is a longtime opponent of the authoritarian regime in Tajikistan. AFP reported he fought against Tajik forces in the bloody civil war but that he was integrated into the government along with other so-called warlords as part of a Moscow-brokered peace deal.
It is also unclear as to whether those men have been formally charged. Families of the accused could not be reached for comment because Internet service was down in the region.
The escalating violence in the region has sparked a call for restraint from the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the Western diplomatic missions in Tajikistan, and human rights groups.
Gorno-Badakhshan, a linguistically and ethnically distinct region, has been home to rebels who opposed government forces during the conflict in the 1990s.
While it makes up almost half of the country, its population is a mere 250,000. The region is difficult to travel around because of the mountainous terrain, while its economy suffers from unemployment, difficult living conditions, and high food prices.