UFA, Bashkortostan -- The Lenin District Court in Ufa, the capital of the Russian republic of Bashkortostan, has ruled that well-known independent Bashkir journalist Ayrat Dilmohammatov should remain in preliminary detention for two more months while an investigation are under way, RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service reports.
Dilmohammatov was detained two months ago for printing articles in the “Maydan” newspaper that the authorities considered to be extremist. The newspaper was shut down after the articles’ publication.
Dilmohammatov’s colleague Viktor Shmakov, whose newspaper “Vmeste” (Together) was shut down as well, told RFE/RL that journalists and rights activists were not allowed in the courtroom on July 27, when the ruling against Dilmohammatov was made.
Dilmohammatov's supporters say his case is politically motivated.