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Estonia Court Hands 2 Russians Prison Terms for Aiding IS

An Islamic State flag flies over the custom office of Syria's Jarablus border gate as it is pictured from the Turkish town of Karkamis, in Gaziantep province, Turkey.

Two Russian citizens have been handed prison sentences after an Estonian court found them guilty of abetting an Islamic State recruit, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Tuesday.

Ramil Khalilov, 25, and Roman Manko, 30, were found guilty of providing Interpol fugitive Ivan Sazanakov with funding, the report said, citing the Tallinn court's press service.

Khalilov and Manko, both residents of Estonia but holders of Russian citizenship, were sentenced to seven years and five years in prison respectively, the report said.

Sazanakov made headlines in 2013 when he became the first resident of Estonia to join the ranks of the Islamic State in Syria after changing his name to Abdurrakhman Azan, the Delfi.ee news website reported earlier.

Khalilov and Manko were detained by Estonian security services in April but it was not reported the two men held Russian citizenship at the time, RIA Novosti said.

Both men have pleaded innocent to the charges and have denied they supported any terrorist organization, the report said.

The Islamic State is a terrorist organization banned in Russia.

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