The Witnesses were outlawed in Russia in 2017 when the nation’s supreme court declared the movement “extremist,” in the same category as the Islamic State terrorist organization. The religious group is apolitical and is noted for its pacifism and refusal of military service. The three were “wrongly convicted and harshly sentenced to lengthy prison terms,” said Jarrod Lopes, a Jehovah’s Witness spokesman. “Russian officials have not been inconspicuous about persecuting Jehovah’s Witnesses,” Mr. Lopes added. “Arrogantly and barbarically, Russian officers record themselves raiding the homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses and forcibly arresting them. The footage is all over the internet and social media.”