Russian law enforcement authorities said Wednesday that they uncovered and dismantled a female terrorist cell based in the republic of Tatarstan.
In a video published by state-run TASS news agency, armed agents from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) were shown entering a home and detaining women, followed by the officers displaying several books and documents whose contents were blurred.
“A significant amount of extremist literature banned in Russia, communications equipment and electronic storage devices used in terrorist activities were found and confiscated,” the law enforcement body said in a statement.
The FSB accused the women of “carrying out targeted work to spread terrorist ideology on the territory of [Russia], based on the doctrine of creating the so-called world caliphate.” The women allegedly conspired to recruit Russian citizens for an unnamed terrorist organization banned inside the country.
Similar arrests have been made across Russia in recent months. In August, the FSB arrested two “religious figures” in the Tyumen region who were suspected of recruiting people for terrorist organizations based in Syria.
Russian law enforcement authorities appear to be cracking down harder on suspected terrorist activities following the deadly March attack at a concert hall outside of Moscow.
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