Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Prominent religious blogger and founder of the media platform Azon Global, Alisher Tursunov (also known as Mubashshir Ahmad), has been deported from Türkiye to Uzbekistan.

According to the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan, Tursunov was detained on 8 May in Türkiye at the request of the Uzbek authorities. Two days later, on 10 May, he was deported to Uzbekistan.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that Alisher Akhmadovich Tursunov, born in 1974, was listed on Interpol's international wanted persons list.

Expert examinations have established that the content distributed through the online platforms he created, including materials posted on social media, contained information that contravenes Uzbekistan’s current legislation.

As a result, a criminal case has been initiated against Tursunov under Articles 244¹ and 244³ of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan, which pertain to the production, possession, and dissemination of materials posing a threat to public security and order, as well as the illegal distribution of religious literature.

As a preventive measure, he has been placed in pre-trial detention.

Investigative procedures related to the criminal case are currently ongoing.