VLADIVOSTOK, August 13 (RIA Novosti) - An investigator in the Amur Region in the Russian Far East has launched a criminal probe into a case of online extremism, local prosecutors said Monday.
Extremist statements are considered a crime in Russia, punishable by a fine of up to 300,000 rubles ($11,800) or three years in prison.
Prosecutors established that a Web site in Belogorsk, in the Amur Region, posted materials in May aimed at provoking racial, ethnic or religious conflicts.
According to an expert in philology, "the text's message was to provoke hatred and enmity towards people of other nations, the statements were insulting, and the author of the text antagonized people over their national identity."
Prosecutors in the Far Eastern Federal District said 22 radical extremist-prone youth movements are active in the region. All the movements are under police surveillance.
The investigation is continuing.
