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Bakhtior Sattori was attacked in Moscow.
Bakhtior Sattori was attacked in Moscow.
A well-known Tajik journalist and activist has been stabbed in Moscow.

Bakhtior Sattori told RFE/RL in a telephone interview on February 20 that an unknown assailant attacked him near his apartment.

Sattori said he was stabbed in the stomach and face on February 19.

He underwent surgery and doctors say his condition is serious but stable.

Sattori said he has no idea who is behind the attack.

He said the attacker's face was covered but he described the man's eyes as looking "Central Asian."

Sattori, 49, worked at the Tajik Embassy in Moscow before becoming the press secretary of the Tajik Migration Service's representative board in Moscow.

After losing his job last year, Sattori became an active member of an organization called the Training Club of Tajikistan's Future Government.

-- RFE/RL's Tajik Service
The Belarusian Justice Ministry has refused to legally register a homosexual rights organization in Minsk.

The organization's website -- gaybelarus.by -- published part of a letter from the ministry explaining the decision.

It stated "the organization does not have in its charter any clauses on supporting social maturity and comprehensive development of the Belarusian youth."

The organization's charter states its major activities will be linked to defending the rights of homosexuals, bisexuals, and transsexuals.

Organizations cannot legally operate unless they are registered with the Justice Ministry.

The group plans to appeal the Justice Ministry's decision to the country's Supreme Court.

Although homosexuality was decriminalized in Belarus after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Belarusian homosexuals often face threats and attacks.

With reporting by Interfax

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"Watchdog" is a blog with a singular mission -- to monitor the latest developments concerning human rights, civil society, and press freedom. We'll pay particular attention to reports concerning countries in RFE/RL's broadcast region.

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