TASHKENT, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Uzbekistan has arrested members of a radical group in central Syrdarya region suspected of agitating "jihadist ideology" and financing terrorist groups operating in the Middle East, police said Thursday.
The police department did not reveal the number of the arrested, saying that two leaders of the group fell under the influence of international terrorist organizations while working abroad.
After returning home, they "were engaged in disseminating ideological guides of international terrorist organizations among the population using social networks," the police said.
According to the police statement, the detainees opened a charity group on messenging app Telegram to gather money for the reconstruction of local mosques, but eventually the money was sent to support the radical groups in Syria.
A criminal investigation has been launched, it said. Enditem
