From Le Figaro with AFP
Published 2 hours ago, updated 6 minutes ago
” data-script=”https://static.lefigaro.fr/widget-video/short-ttl/video/index.js” >
Nikita Jouravel was accused of burning the Koran and convicted of “hooliganism,” “violating the right to freedom of conscience,” and “insulting religious feelings.” He was beaten by Adam Kadyrov, then 15 years old.
A Russian man beaten by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's son, who accused him of burning a Koran, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison in Chechnya on Tuesday ©nie. 20-year-old Nikita Jouravel was accused of “hooliganism” and “violation of the right to freedom of conscience,” including “insulting religious feelings.” He was tried in this predominantly Muslim Russian republic in the Caucasus. The young man was “found guilty of the accused acts (…) and sentenced to three and a half years in a camp,” a court in Grozny, the Czech capital, said in a statement. Chen, the process manager. The court emphasized the “major social impact of this case in Russia.”
The young man was arrested last May and accused of burning a Koran in Volgograd, southwest Russia. He was then transferred to Chechnya at the request of local authorities. His case took a political turn when images were released showing ruthless Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's then 15-year-old son Adam beating Nikita Jouravel, then in custody.
Kadyrov's son became a hero
Ramzan Kadyrov said he was “proud” of his offspring. His son Adam subsequently received a flood of official awards from various Russian regions. At a hearing in early November, Nikita Jouravel admitted the facts and practiced self-criticism, a widespread practice in Chechnya that human rights NGOs say is carried out under coercion. “During my detention, I read and study the Koran to understand to what extent I have offended the feelings of believers,” he assured.
Ramzan Kadyrov, Vladimir Putin's loyal deputy, has been accused of multiple human rights violations in his republic. He advocates and defends strict Islam. For example, he strongly condemned the Mohammed cartoons published by the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which were the target of a terrorist attack in January 2015.
Ramzan Kadyrov is also a keen supporter of Russia's attack on Ukraine. In October 2022, he claimed that three of his sons – Akhmat, Eli and Adam, all under 20 – had been sent to the front. They then returned to Chechnya as heroes.