DUSHANBE, June 16, 2016, Asia-Plus – Three residents of the northern province of Sughd have got lengthy jail terms for an attempt to travel to Syria to fight with the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group.  All of them are residents of the Jabborrasoulov district.

A court in Dushanbe’s Ismoili Somoni district sentenced Ishmurod Qushmuratov, 64, his grandson Akbar Qushmuratov, 19, and Orifzhon Arifzhanov to 12 years in prison each on June 14.

Ishmurod Qushmuratov’s son Mamatqul Qushmuraov was reportedly fighting alongside IS militants in Syria and he was killed in August last year.

When Ishmurod Qushmuratov knew about death of his son he persuaded his grandson Akbar and their fellow-villager Orifzhon Arifzhanov to travel to Syria to fight with the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group.

They were detained by Turkish security forces on October 10, 2015 while illegally crossing the Turkish-Syria border.  Later on they were extradited to Tajikistan.