Uzbek Blogger Sentenced To Seven Years In Prison

A district court in Uzbekistan's capital, Tashkent, has sentenced blogger and investigative journalist Abduqodir Mominov to seven years and three months in prison on charges that rights groups say are politically motivated. Prosecutors were asking for 11 years in prison. Mominov was arrested on February 8 and charged with fraud and extortion. Mominov is a well-known critic of President Shavkat Mirziyoev. The 33-year-old has his own YouTube channel, called Quzgu, with 247,000 followers. Uzbekistan has arrested several bloggers and charged them with extortion in recent months. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Uzbek Service, click here.