Moscow (AsiaNews) - An emergency meeting is underway at
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian autonomous republic of Tatarstan,
after todays twin attacks on two of the top regional Islamic authorities. In
Kazan, the capital of the Muslim majority republic
on the Volga, a car bombing targeted the mufti
of Tatarsta, Ildus Faizov, the regional authority on Islam. According
to Rbc agency sources citing local security personnel, the cleric has been
taken to hospital in a serious condition. Just
one hour earlier, Faizov deputy's, Waliullah Yakupov, head of the spiritual
administration of the republic was shot dead outside his home.
The
double attack has shocked the city, always considered a model of tolerance and
peaceful coexistence among different religions and 70 ethnic groups,
particularly between Islam and Orthodox.
The
Council of Muftis of Russia has condemned the attacks as particularly serious "terrorist
acts" because they occur on the eve of Ramadan, the holy month for Islam.
A spokesman for the Russian federal prosecutors, Vladimir Markin, said that
according to a 'track' being
followed by investigators, the two incidents are linked and have to do with the
activity of the spiritual leaders. Both
are known as moderate leaders in the fight against the spread of Wahhabism in
Tatarstan, which they considered "a threat to traditional Islam."
According
to some, such as the director of the Kazan
Center for Regional Ethnic Studies,
Suleimanov Rais, "a Caucasian drift has arrived in Tatarstan, where
moderate muftis, who denounce the growing presence of Wahhabi like the preachers
from the North Caucasus, are targeted ". The
expert also points the finger against local authorities which he said "have
long been flirting with extremists by turning a blind eye to their
activities."
For
Geidar Djemal, head of the Islamic committee in Russia,
"the problem is not extremists, but the powerful movements within the Tatar
clergy itself, linked with groups from the security forces who want to shift Moscow's focus from the Caucasus
to Tatarstan, hoping in
awards in their management of terrorism. "