The Kazakh National Security Committee has launched a special operation to neutralize cells of the Takfir wal-Hijra religious extremist organization on the national territory, the committee said.
The operation is in progress in the Almaty, Aktobe and Atyrau regions and the city of Almaty.
"16 persons have been detained on suspicion of the incitement of religious discord and the engagement in activities of an outlawed organization," the committee website said in a report on Wednesday.
Residences of the detainees are being searched, and other investigative and procedural measures are being taken, Interfax reports.
According to the Kazakh National Security Committee, members of the organization are advocating the principle of the so-called 'branding of infidel' (Takfir), which is the foundation of the ideology of Al-Qaeda, ISIS and a number of other extremist groups.
Takfir wal-Hijra followers approve of the activities of terrorists in Syria and Iraq and totally reject the secular form of government and constitutional laws of the country.
