13 August 2024
WEEKLY UPDATE ON THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED CRIMEA ON AUGUST 13, 2024
Main news of the week:
▶ On August 6, the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine landed on the Tendra Spit near Crimea. As a result, they destroyed an enemy MT-LB armored vehicle, an electronic warfare system, and Russian fortifications.
▶ On the night of August 8-9, a Ukrainian MAGURA V5 maritime strike drone destroyed a Russian Project KS-701 Tunets-class speedboat, which the occupiers use in Crimea for patrolling the waters and military logistics.
▶ On the night of August 10, the Ukrainian Navy, together with the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, hit an oil platform in the Black Sea, which the occupiers used for GPS spoofing to make civilian navigation dangerous. Before the attack, the occupiers moved equipment and military personnel to the platform.
Crimes committed by the Russian Federation
▶ As of August 6, 2024, Russia has illegally imprisoned 218 people in occupied Crimea on ethnic, religious, and political grounds, 133 of them Crimean Tatars.
▶ The occupiers illegally transferred six Crimean Tatar activists, political prisoners Abdulmedzhyt Seitumerov, Ametkhan Umerov, Eldar Yakubov, Seidamet Mustafaiev, Remzi Nimetulaiev, and Ruslan Asanov from occupied Crimea to Russian Rostov-on-Don. On August 12, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don will begin unlawful trials against the activists. The transfer of civilians from the occupied territories to the territory of the aggressor state and the conduct of trials against them is a violation of human rights and the Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Civilian Persons in Time of War.
▶ Crimean Tatar activists Remzi Bekirov and Raim Aivazov were illegally transferred to Russian prisons in the Republic of Khakassia, the Arkhangelsk region of the Russian Federation, thousands of kilometers away from home. This is another manifestation of the “quiet deportation” of the local population of Crimea by the Russian occupiers.
▶ Crimean Tatar human rights activist Server Mustafaiev, illegally sentenced by the occupiers to 14 years in prison, is rapidly losing his eyesight in the harsh conditions of detention in the Tambov region of the Russian Federation. The occupiers illegally detained him for his public statements in defense of victims of political persecution and coverage of human rights violations in occupied Crimea.
▶ The illegally convicted Crimean Tatar woman, Leniie Umerova, who is falsely accused of espionage by the Russian Federation, complains of deteriorating health in a Russian prison. Her hair is falling out, and she is often dizzy. According to the results of the tests, her blood iron level has dropped.
▶ A Russian “court” refused to release a severely ill Crimean Tatar political prisoner, Tofik Abdulhaziiev, who was illegally sentenced to 14 years by the occupiers. He suffers from a severe form of tuberculosis and at least eight other diseases.
▶ The occupation court extended the illegal arrest until November 4 for two Crimean activists, Aziz Azizov and Mustafa Abdurmanov, who were illegally detained by the occupiers after massive searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars on March 5, 2024, in Bakhchysarai.
▶ Political prisoners 61-year-old Azamat Eiupov, who suffered four ischemic strokes in a detention center, and 60-year-old Ruslan Nahaiev, who has high blood pressure and kidney pain, are denied medical care in a Russian prison in the Chelyabinsk region of the Russian Federation.
Use of occupied Crimea as a springboard for attacks on Ukraine
▶ Activists of the ATESH resistance movement reconnoitered the remnants of the Russian fleet in Sevastopol. They recorded the relocation of the occupiers’ air defense system to the area of the illegally built “Crimean Bridge.” The activists also report an increase in Russian observation posts on the shores of occupied Sevastopol due to Russians’ fear of a large number of Ukrainian unmanned maritime drones that are actively targeting Russian military targets in the Black Sea.
Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion and spread its military aggression throughout Ukraine, occupied Crimea has been used by Russia as an army base for spreading aggression in various forms.
Resistance movement of Ukrainian citizens in occupied Crimea
▶ Russia has already prosecuted 913 people in occupied Crimea for expressing solidarity with Ukraine, who are subjected to administrative penalties in the form of illegal fines and arrests.
▶ A 43-year-old resident of Sevastopol spoke negatively about the actions of the occupation troops. Russian security forces detained the woman and drew up an administrative report. She faces a fine of 30 to 50 thousand rubles.
▶ A resident of Dzhankoi erased the Russian flag from his car license plate and wrote on social media that Dzhankoi is Ukraine. The occupation forces compelled the man to apologize on camera, although he does not speak Russian, only Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar. In addition, the occupying Russian administration is threatening him with illegal conscription into the Russian army, which is a violation of the Geneva Conventions, which prohibits the unlawful mobilization of residents of the occupied territories by the aggressor state.
▶ A Crimean resident posted comments on social media criticizing the occupiers and the so-called “President of Russia.” The occupiers detained the man and forced him to apologize on camera, and he is facing an illegal “trial.”
▶ Activists of the Yellow Ribbon movement continue to resist the occupiers in Crimea, Activists distributed patriotic leaflets reminding that Russian occupiers are not welcome in Crimea. In particular, leaflets can be found in Simferopol, Sevastopol, Alushta, and Yalta.
▶ Activists of the Crimean Combat Seagulls continue to expose the occupiers’ propaganda activities. They report on the involvement of children in the Kremlin’s militaristic projects, drawing attention to possible provocations by Russian special services. Members of the movement also actively distribute patriotic leaflets in the cities of Crimea, reminding people that Crimea is Ukraine and that every occupier and collaborator will be found and punished.
▶ Activists of the Zla Mavka resistance movement place symbols of resistance in the cities of occupied Crimea to remind them that the locals are waiting for Ukraine to liberate them. The activists also report that the occupation administration of Crimea is hiding information about the military successes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from residents.
A sharp increase in solidarity and resistance actions of the residents of occupied Crimea against the Russian occupiers marked the full-scale invasion. Residents of the occupied territories unite in resistance movements, such as the mentioned Yellow Ribbon movement, Crimean Combat Seagulls, Zla Mavka, and ATESH, or act individually. To suppress the resistance movement of residents in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea after February 24, 2022, the occupiers actively began to prosecute and bring to administrative responsibility Ukrainian citizens under the article on the so-called “discrediting the Russian army.”
The de-occupation of Crimea is integral to ending the war and restoring peace. Ukrainians are doing everything they can to stop the aggressor and protect the entire world from Russia’s criminal actions. The war in Ukraine is not a local or regional issue but a threat to the whole world and international order.
We urge the international community not to ignore Russian crimes against Ukrainian citizens in occupied Crimea and to spread information about human rights violations in the occupation.