The wife of a Kabardino-Balkarian resident complained about his six-month detention in a solitary confinement cell.

Kabardino-Balkaria resident Rustam Kurmanov is being held in solitary confinement after being arrested for alleged involvement in an extremist organization. His wife believes this is a way to extract a confession from him.

Kabardino-Balkaria resident Rustam Kurmanov, accused of involvement in At-Takfir wal-Hijra*, has been held in solitary confinement in Nalchik's Pretrial Detention Center No. 1 since early July, his wife, Asiyat Gaboyeva, told OVD-Info**.

"Since the day of his arrest, my husband has been held in solitary confinement under harsh conditions. This could seriously affect his physical and mental health. The reasons for this harsh measure have not been explained to us," she said.

Gaboeva suspects that his placement in solitary confinement was part of a pressure campaign to extract the desired testimony from her husband.

Kurmanov was detained on July 10 in the village of Novaya Balkaria. He was accused of participating in an extremist organization (Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code). Gaboeva calls the charges against her husband unfounded. She maintains his innocence.

The man has a nine-month-old child. Previously, Kurmanov worked in Moscow as a sole proprietor, and in the summer of 2022, he returned to Novaya Balkaria to care for his elderly parents and took up agriculture, raising and selling cattle and sheep and harvesting hay.

"At Takfir wal-Hijra"* is not popular among residents of the North Caucasus and has not claimed responsibility for terrorist attacks in Russia, analysts previously interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" indicated.