Chechnya’s Kadyrov calls for crackdown on sorcery

Sorcerers, psychics, and faith healers may be on the way out in Chechnya, where the leader of the mountainous, overwhelmingly Muslim region in Russia’s Caucasus has ordered a crackdown on the practices.

Kremlin-backed strongman Ramzan Kadyrov called on Chechens to steer clear of “charlatans” claiming to have magic powers, whom he accused of exploiting people’s sufferings for money.

Kadyrov said at a meeting with municipal leaders in Grozny, the capital, on Saturday that “turning to wizards and false healers won’t bring them any relief and is banned by Islam,” according to a statement from the Chechen government. He went on to threaten that anyone engaging in such practices would feel the force of the region’s feared security services.

Harry Potter should scratch Chechnya off his list of vacation spots.