Amid campaign against Muslim clergy, Russian deputy mufti fined again over medieval battle painting

Amid campaign against Muslim clergy, Russian deputy mufti fined again over medieval battle painting A Moscow judge fined the deputy chairman of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Russia, Damir Mukhetdinov, 20,000 rubles for inciting enmity, the Russian Telegram news channel Ostorozhno Novosti reported. The case stemmed from two paintings in Mukhetdinov’s office: Plenenie Vasiliya Tyomnogo pod Suzdalem (“The Capture of Vasily the Blind near Suzdal”) and Pir na Kalke (“The Feast on the Kalka”). The board posted photos of the paintings on its website after Mukhetdinov met with Muslims from Donetsk. In early June, Mukhetdinov was fined 150,000 rubles for desecrating religious objects — that earlier fine, too, stemmed from the Kalka painting, which depicts the Battle of the Kalka River between the Mongol army and an alliance of Rus’ principalities and the Polovtsians in 1223. This spring, security forces detained and arrested muftis and other Muslim religious and community figures across Russia. Political scientists specializing in Islamic studies, independent journalists, and pro-war “Z-bloggers” believe this campaign of persecution is a crackdown on the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Russia and, in particular, its head, Mufti Ravil Gainutdin. At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication. If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at [email protected]. To read Meduza’s exclusive content in English, please subscribe to our newsletter.