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RFE/RL (13 April 2024)

Uzbekistan has intensified measures against "religious extremism" and "terrorism" recently, raiding the homes of suspected extremists, warning parents against sending children to Islamic schools abroad, and preventing imams from leaving the country.

The tough actions by Uzbek officials come on the heels of the terrorist attack that killed 144 people at the Crocus music venue near Moscow on March 22 -- allegedly carried out by Tajiks and planned by the extremist Islamic State (IS) group.

Some observers link the crackdown to Uzbek government anxiety from the tragic event that has led to xenophobic treatment of Central Asians in Russia, where hundreds of thousands of Uzbeks work.

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