Russian beaten by Chechen leader's son is jailed for Koran burning

Defendant Nikita Zhuravel, who was detained in May 2023 under a law against offending religious believers' feelings after he burned a copy of the Koran outside a mosque in Volgograd city, attends a court hearing in the Chechen capital of Grozny, Russia, February 27, 2024. REUTERS/Chingis Kondarov

TBILISI (Reuters) -A Russian man who publicly burnt a copy of the Koran was jailed for three and a half years on Tuesday in the Russian region of Chechnya.

The case of Nikita Zhuravel drew international attention last year when Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov published a video in which his son Adam was shown beating and kicking the defendant while he was in prison awaiting trial.