Religious Community "Darul-Arqam" suspended, a source reports

The religious community of Muslims "Darul-Arqam" in Moscow, in the mosque of which 140 parishioners had been detained on suspicion of belonging to extremist religious organizations, has suspended its operation for an indefinite period, said one of the believers; however, so far there is no official confirmation of the information from the leadership of the community.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on April 26, 140 believers were detained in the Moscow mosque "Darul-Arqam". According to the FSB, earlier the mosque had been attended by the parishioners, who subsequently joined the underground in Northern Caucasus. In his turn, Magomedbasir Gasanov, the chair of the community and Doctor of Sharia Sciences, believes that the mass detentions of believers of the Muslim religious community "Darul-Arqam" in Moscow were just a misunderstanding. The mosque that he heads has never preached radical Islamic ideas and extremist appeals have never been allowed, he has assured.

The fact that the religious community suspends its operation was reported by Imam Idris Kanaev after the Friday prayer, as one of the members of the community "Darul-Arqam" told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on the conditions of anonymity.

"He hasn't commented on the reasons for such a step, but told only that the activities have been suspended indefinitely," said the source.

According to his story, as of May 5, not only the work of the mosques was suspended, but also the lectures and classes on the Quran and the Arabic language were stopped, and even the kindergarten that functioned there.

"Moscow Muslims discuss a variety of versions, which could cause the suspension of 'Darul-Arqam'. The most widespread one is the pressure from the law enforcers who detained members of the Muslim community on April 26. In think the community leadership made a reasonable decision in order to protect parishioners from further pressure. Hopefully, all the problems will be sorted out, and the mosque will be operational in the near future," said the source.