About 1,000 Tajik Nationals Stranded At Moscow Airports

Tajiks and other Central Asians wait inside Vnukovo airport in Moscow as they look to enter Russia.

The Tajik Foreign Ministry said on April 28 that 954 Tajik nationals have been left stranded at Moscow airports due to tightened passport and custom controls in the wake of a terror attack last month. Hundreds of arriving Tajiks have been informed that they are barred from entering Russia, leaving them inside the airports as they seek a resolution. A day earlier, the ministry called on Tajik citizens not to travel to Russia. Rights groups said the ministry's recommendation was linked to a surge in anti-Tajik sentiment in Russia after 11 Tajik men were arrested for their alleged involvement in the attack on a concert hall near Moscow in March that left 144 people dead. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Tajik Service, click here.