The life of Sukhrob Zafar, leader of “Group 24,” is under threat in the detention center of Tajikistan’s State Committee for National Security (SCNS). On February 23, 2024, Nasimjon Sharipov Kadamalievich, a Tajikistan citizen and member of the political “Group 24,” born on February 18, 1985, and residing in the Bayrampaşa district of Istanbul Province, was abducted. Additionally, the political leader of “Group 24,” Sukhrob Zafar (official name Sukhrob Turaev), born on November 24, 1978, a native of Vose’ district and a citizen of Tajikistan living in Silivri, at the Alipasha Toki2 Istanbul residential complex, was abducted on March 10, 2024.
Our sources confirm that Sukhrob Zafar is currently held in the SCNS detention center in Tajikistan. He is periodically subjected to torture and currently in dire need of medical assistance, which is difficult to obtain as previous attempts have resulted in his injury. He is unable to walk. Sources also confirm that without urgent medical help, he may die from the severe torture endured.
Approximately two weeks before the abduction, Nasimjon Sharipov received refugee status in Turkey. Sukhrob Zafar, whose official name is Sukhrob Turaev, has been in Istanbul since October 8, 2014, and holds official asylum seeker status in Turkey, according to UNHCR documents under number 2015/504357 since 2015.
We urge democratic countries and international organizations to assist in providing urgent medical care to Sukhrob Zafar, the leader of the political “Group 24,” who is detained in the SCNS detention center of Tajikistan. We also call on the Turkish government to thoroughly investigate the crimes committed by the SCNS and diplomatic corps of Tajikistan on Turkish territory. Turkey, as a NATO member and candidate for the European Economic Union, must take appropriate measures without hesitation and with a full understanding of the seriousness of these crimes.
Sharofiddin Gadoev,
April 29, 2024.
