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Russian Teen Arrested For Burning Koran Claims Kadyrov's Son Beat Him In Jail Cell


Nikita Zhuravel (file photo)
Nikita Zhuravel (file photo)

A Russian teenager arrested for publicly burning a Koran in the southwestern region of Volgograd and kept in pretrial detention in Chechnya says he was beaten in a jail cell by Adam Kadyrov, the 15-year-old son of Chechnya's authoritarian leader, Ramzan Kadyrov. Chechen Ombudsman Mansur Soltayev said on August 16 that Russia's ombudswoman, Tatyana Moskalkova, instructed him to investigate Nikita Zhuravel's claim. The 19-year-old was arrested in May on a charge of "insulting believers' feelings." The case against him was launched in Chechnya, instead of Volgograd, due to "multiple requests by residents of the Chechen Republic." To read the original story by RFE/RL's Russian Service, click here.

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