Russia considers Jehovah’s Witnesses ban

The Supreme Court in Russia has started reviewing a government request to ban Jehovah’s Witness and declare it an ‘extremist organisation’.

This comes a month after the Justice Ministry filed a lawsuit with the Russia’s Supreme Court against the national headquarters of the country’s Jehovah’s Witnesses which has 175,000 members in Russia and 395 branches across the country, to be labeled an ‘extremist organization’.

In the case which began on Wednesday, it was reported that the Jehovah’s witnesses filed a counter lawsuit against the Justice Ministry lawyers, calling its actions unlawful and asking the court to recognize the organization’s members as victims of political repression.

The court however ruled that it was not part of its jurisdiction, according to BBC report. The case was eventually adjourned and the hearing will continue later today.