Russia's chief rabbi says sects should be banned

Russia's chief rabbi Berl Lazar has proposed passing a federal law banning the activities of religious sects.

"Reports available to us suggest that more than one million Russian citizens are members of various sects. This is a serious threat. We shouldn't sit back and wait until something bad happens. We don't need such sects," Lazar told Interfax.

He said Russia needs a normal law clearly defining the meaning of the terms "sect" and "century old tradition."