Migrants Beaten In Moscow Cafe Amid Ongoing Crackdown On Central Asians

Staff and customers say they were badly beaten by Moscow police when they raided a cafe employing Central Asian migrants. It was the latest in a series of aggressive raids on the cafe that have seen Russian security forces use heavy-handed tactics, destroy surveillance equipment, and detain both staff and customers. Central Asian migrants have been increasingly targeted since four Tajik men were arrested for a deadly terror attack on a Moscow concert in March 2024. Deportations have risen sharply in the first three months of 2025 with nearly 5,000 migrants being expelled from the Russian capital.