Moscow Court Transfers 123 Jehovah's Witness Properties to State Control
A Moscow court has confiscated 123 properties belonging to Jehovah's Witnesses and handed them over to the Russian government.
The court ordered the seizure of 63 residential and commercial buildings covering more than 11,000 square meters, along with 60 land parcels totaling 5.6 hectares. These assets were transferred to state ownership. The move follows Russia's 2017 designation of Jehovah's Witnesses as an extremist organization, a ruling later deemed illegal by the European Court of Human Rights. Authorities have also imprisoned numerous members on extremism charges.
Why it matters
The seizure underscores Russia's ongoing crackdown on a religious minority deemed extremist, affecting property rights and religious freedom.
In this story
property seizureextremist organizationJehovah's WitnessesRussian courtstate ownershiphuman rights rulingland confiscation