Chief Rabbi of Sochi deprived of right of residence in Russia

The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has revoked a residence permit issued to Rabbi Arieh Edelkopf, a US citizen. The MIA's officials have explained their decision by the fact that Rabbi Arieh Edelkopf poses a threat to national security.

"They want to deport me and my family from Russia. They refer to provisions of Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Article 7 N115-FZ ('On legal status of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation', note of the 'Caucasian Knot'), that is, by our actions, we are creating a threat to Russian security," Rabbi Arieh Edelkopf wrote on his Facebook page.

The Rabbi and his family members are to leave Russia until February 11.

The decision to cancel the residence permit was made on December 29, 2016. Minor children of Rabbi Arieh Edelkopf should leave the country together with him, and their residence permits are also revoked, the "TASS" reports with reference to the Department for Migration of the MIA's Chief Department for the Krasnodar Territory.

Rabbi Arieh Edelkopf himself rejects the accusations of threatening the security of Russia. According to him, he has not been engaged in political activities, has not cooperated with foreign intelligence services, and he is not aware why the public authorities considered his family members dangerous for stay in Russia, the newspaper "Nezavisimaya Gazeta" reports.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.