MOSCOW, October 20. /TASS/. A cell of Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami international terrorist organization has been eliminated in the Moscow Region, Interior Ministry official spokesperson Elena Alexeyeva told TASS on Tuesday.

"Officers of the Russian Interior Ministry’s main department on economic security and countering corruption, Russian Interior Ministry’s main department on countering extremism and Russian Interior Ministry’s department in Moscow and Moscow Region carried out a large-scale special operation on uncovering and eliminating illegal activities of terrorist underground, as well as channels of financing terrorism and extremism," Alexeyeva said.

She added that Interior Ministry earlier received information that a cell of Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami international terrorist organization prohibited in Russia was operating in the Moscow Region. The members of the group recruited Muslims, distributed banned literature and collected money to provide financial assistance to militants.

"Special operations were carried out in the framework of the criminal case on organizing and participating in the terrorist organization instituted by Interior Ministry’s investigative department in Moscow. Searches were carried out in 24 places where Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami members lived. Among seized evidence were bank cards, electronic and printed extremist materials and other kinds of prohibited literature propagating changing Russia’s constitutional regime and establishing a global caliphate," Alexeyeva explained.

As a result of the operations, 97 people were brought in for checks. Twenty people were detained, including leaders of the extremist cell.