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The Russian Ministry of Justice has moved to shut down Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia after it labeled it an extremist organisation. The ministry has applied to shut down the group’s national headquarters near St Petersburg.
The Supreme Court will however have to rule whether the group is an extremist group.
Authorities have put several of its publications on a list of banned extremist literature, and prosecutors have long cast it as an organisation that destroys families, fosters hatred and threatens lives, a description the organisation says is false.
The U.S.-founded Jehovah’s Witnesses says it numbers about 8 million people worldwide.
The religious organisation is known for its foreign ministries as well as its door-to-door campaigns, but has had problems for years with Russian authorities, who view it as a pernicious cult, an allegation it denies.
In a statement, the Jehovah’s Witnesses press office said: “Millions of believers all over the world consider the ministry’s actions a big mistake.
“If this lawsuit is successful, it will entail catastrophic consequences for freedom of religious worship in Russia.”