A New Wave of Searches of Jehovah's Witnesses Took Place Near the Chinese Border in Russia

On September 10, 2021, the Border Guard Department of the Federal Security Service of Russia in Primorye Territory conducted four searches in the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses living near the Chinese border. It is not yet known whether a criminal case has been opened or whether the searches were conducted as part of operational and investigative activities.

Electronic devices, Bibles, religious literature, and personal notes in which they found the Biblical name of God - Jehovah - were confiscated from believers in Pavlo-Fedorovka, Gorny Klyuchi, and Kirovskii settlements.

Fourteen criminal cases have already been initiated against 37 Jehovah's Witnesses in Primorye Territory. Two believers from Razdolnoye village — 74-year-old Lyudmila Shut and 78-year-old Vladimir Filippov received suspended sentences of 4 and 6 years respectively for their beliefs.