77-year-old pastor Begjan Shirmedov, along with his wife Klara, were treated extremely roughly during a police raid on September 23 in the city of Dashoguz in northern Turkmenistan. During the raid, police and other unidentified officials grabbed Pastor Begjan by the collar and dragged him out of the house, beating his wife's hands bloody. The pastor's immediate family was present and watched in shock. Around 15 members of the church were interrogated and literature was confiscated.
Pastor Begjan is a relatively well-known figure among Turkmen Christians as he writes poetry, among other things.
In another raid two weeks earlier on another church in the same city, three participants in a church meeting were fined and one of the convicted, Oleg Piyashev, was denied exit from Turkmenistan, also on September 23, as he wanted to return to Russia where he now resides despite being born and raised in Turkmenistan. He traveled on a Russian passport, which is why the Russian authorities are now seeking an explanation from the Turkmen authorities for the detention. It most likely has something to do with Piyashev's church activities.
