Witness in case of recruiting Pankisi residents said Imam Borchashvili had links with IS

Ayuf Borchashvili, the Imam of the village of Djokolo, detained at the Tbilisi Airport, had been actively involved in recruiting young Muslims and sending them to Syria to take part in the warfare for the "Islamic State" (IS), which was recognized to be a terrorist organization. This was stated by Giorgi Borchashvili, a relative of the Imam.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that, according to Georgian authorities, in the villages of the Pankisi Gorge, recruiters of the IS (earlier, the ISIL – Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant), recognized as a terrorist organization, were very active. On June 15, at the Tbilisi Airport, four persons were detained, who, according to the police, were on their way to Syria. Ayuf Borchashvili was among them; however, local residents do not believe in his guilt.

According to the Information Centre of Kakheti, which refers to Giorgi Borchashvili, Ayuf tried to recruit him for sending to Syria, by promising financial aid to him instead.

Giorgi has also stated that "throughout Georgia there are several 'Jamaats', or 'brotherhoods', which are headed by leaders or emirs, who obey to Ayuf Borchashvili."

However, Tariel Nakaidze, the head of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims (SAM) of Georgia, could not confirm the existence of a network of "Jamaats".

As noted by Mamuka Areshidze, the head of the Institute of Strategic Studies of the Caucasus, supporters of radical Islam are in many parts of Georgia; however, a formed "Jamaat" exists only in the Pankisi Gorge. At the same time, according to his story, not all members of these communities support the "Islamic State".

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.