Russian court jails six Jehovah's Witnesses for extremism

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian regional court in Saratov on Thursday jailed six Jehovah's Witnesses for up to three and a half years after finding them guilty of extremism, a court spokeswoman said on Friday.

"Yes they were convicted," the court spokeswoman, Olga Pirueva, told Reuters. "Punishments ranged from three years and six months down to two years (in jail)," she said.

The six men were found guilty of continuing the activities of an extremist organisation.

Lawyers for the men plan to appeal what they regard as absurd convictions, the Jehovah's Witnesses said in a statement.

(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn)