MUFTI: MUSLIMS IN OCCUPIED DONBASS TERRITORY NOT PESTERED
In the occupied territories of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, Muslims in the main are not pestered and their treatment on the part of militants is neutral. This was said in an interview with Radio Liberty by the mufti of the Ecclesiastical Board of Muslims of Ukraine "UMMA," Said Ismagilov of Donetsk.
"Muslims of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions in the main are not pestered. I do not know why. Possibly because Islam is recognized as an official state religion in Russia, or they are not viewed as 'agents of the State Department,' or because there are many Muslims from the Caucasus and other regions of Russia among the militants," he said.
The mufti said that the attitude toward Muslims in the occupied territory now is cautious.
"This cannot compare with the attitude toward protestants and Orthodox of the Kiev patriarchate. With regard to the attitude toward Muslims, there is not targeted persecution on religious grounds," the clergyman added.
Mufti Said Ismagilov also noted that Muslims have managed to retain their property in the occupied territories.
"The fact is that religious property is most often owned by the local religious communities. Periodically they receive instructions on what to do. Representatives of the so-called DPR say that pretty soon a code will be developed and it will be necessary to reregister in accordance with rules adopted on the occupied territory. However, when believers ask what will be its legal basis and by what kind of laws it will be done, they do not receive a specific answer. Today the property of Muslim communities remains in the hands of Muslim communities," the mufti emphasized. (tr. by PDS, posted 29 May 2015)
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