KAZAN, Russia - Rustam Batrov, the 37-year-old, baby-faced deputy mufti of Tatarstan, is warm and engaging as he describes the renaissance of his faith in the republic, one of the traditional centers of Russian Islam. More than 1,500 mosques have been built in Tatarstan since the collapse of communism, Muslim holidays are now state holidays, and the government supports Islamic studies.
Al Jazeera: As ties with the West suffer, Russia embraces its own ‘East’
Russian Muslims pray outside the central mosque in Moscow on July 17, during celebrations of Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
