15 October 2024
WEEKLY UPDATE ON THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED CRIMEA ON OCTOBER 15, 2024
Main news of the week
▶ Russian security forces illegally detained a 53-year-old resident of Kerch for his participation in the Jehovah’s Witnesses religious organization. A criminal case was opened against the man. Russian occupiers continue to persecute Crimean residents on religious grounds.
Crimes committed by the Russian Federation
▶ As of October 2024, Russia has illegally imprisoned 218 people in occupied Crimea for ethnic, religious, and political grounds, including 132 Crimean Tatars.
▶ The Russian invaders illegally detained a resident of occupied Feodosiia for allegedly passing photos of Russian Black Sea Fleet ships to Ukrainian security services. The occupiers opened a criminal case against the man, who faces up to 20 years in prison.
▶ The occupation “court” illegally sentenced a resident of Sevastopol to 21 years in prison on groundless charges of alleged “high treason.” The man is accused of collaborating with the Security Service of Ukraine and allegedly planning to set fire to the occupation administration in Sevastopol.
The use of occupied Crimea as a springboard for attacks on Ukraine and the militarization of the peninsula
▶ According to the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russian occupiers carried out a series of massive attacks on Ukrainian territory over the past week. Specifically, they launched 5 Iskander-M ballistic missiles, 2 Kh-31P guided air missiles, and 22 Shahed-type attack UAVs, including strikes from occupied Crimea and the Black Sea.
▶ Activists from the ATESH movement report that after the Ukrainian Armed Forces hit the Russian oil terminal in occupied Feodosiia, the occupiers were forced to redistribute fuel across various locations on the peninsula, carefully concealing storage sites. The activists note that the destruction of the oil depot in Feodosiia has led to a severe fuel shortage for the Russian Armed Forces. The occupiers are creating numerous mobile refueling stations that constantly change their locations due to fear of further strikes.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion and extended its military aggression across the entire territory of Ukraine, occupied Crimea has been used by Russia as a military base to propagate its aggression in various forms. From the peninsula, the occupiers continue to launch attacks on Ukraine, particularly targeting civilian infrastructure.
The resistance movement of Ukrainian citizens in occupied Crimea
▶ For showing solidarity with Ukraine, Russia is now persecuting 979 people in occupied Crimea, subjecting them to administrative penalties in the form of illegal fines and arrests.
▶ A resident of occupied Kerch hung the Ukrainian flag on his balcony and played the Ukrainian anthem. Russian security forces detained the man, filed an administrative report against him, and referred the case to the occupation court. The occupiers consider the display of Ukrainian state symbols as propaganda of Nazism, for which residents of the occupied territories are persecuted.
▶ A resident of Yalta, using an anonymous account on social media, posted Ukrainian symbols and expressed support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The occupiers unlawfully detained the man and sent the case materials to the occupation “court”.
▶ Activists of the Yellow Ribbon movement in occupied Yevpatoriia and Simferopol hung ribbons, painted trees, and posted stickers as a reminder that resistance to the occupiers in Crimea continues. Additionally, activists carried out actions in Bakhchysarai, Koktebel, Sevastopol, Simferopol, and Yalta, reminding everyone that Crimea is Ukraine, and Crimea is waiting for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
▶ Activists of the Crimean Combat Seagulls movement continue to expose the personal information of collaborators and Russian war criminals operating in occupied Crimea.
▶ The resistance movement Zla Mavka continues to publish its diaries, providing information about life in the occupied territories.
The full-scale invasion was marked by a rapid increase in solidarity and resistance actions by residents of occupied Crimea against the Russian occupiers. Residents of occupied territories unite in resistance movements, such as the above-mentioned Yellow Ribbon, 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”.
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. This is not a local or regional issue but a threat to the world and international order.