26 November 2024
WEEKLY UPDATE ON THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED CRIMEA ON NOVEMBER 26, 2024
Main news of the week
▶ On November 21–22, Kyiv hosted the Second International Conference, Crimea Global. Understanding Ukraine through the South, which brought together 19 representatives from Asian, African, and Latin American countries, along with over 130 participants.
Crimes committed by the Russian Federation
▶ As of November 2024, Russia has illegally imprisoned 218 people in occupied Crimea on ethnic, religious, and political grounds, including 132 Crimean Tatars.
▶ Ukrainian Navy reserve officer Oleksii Kyselov, unlawfully sentenced by the Russian occupation administration to 8.5 years in prison, is being illegally transferred to a detention center in Murmansk, Russia, over 3,500 kilometers from Crimea. According to his family, the conditions of Kyselov’s detention remain harsh.
▶ The youngest Crimean political prisoner, Appaz Kurtamet, sentenced by the occupiers to seven years of imprisonment, has not been in contact for more than two weeks. It is likely that the Crimean Tatar is currently being unlawfully transferred to one of Russia’s penal colonies. Previously, the Kremlin captive was held in the infamous Russian prison known as “Vladimir Central.”
▶ Members of the so-called “Sixth Bakhchysarai Group”—Aziz Azizov, Rustem Osmanov, Memet Liumanov, and Mustafa Abduramanov—have been unlawfully transported from occupied Crimea to Rostov-on-Don, Russia. This represents yet another violation of international humanitarian law by Russia, which prohibits the occupation regime from deporting civilians from temporarily occupied territories to the Russian Federation.
▶ Rustem Huhuryk, a Crimean political prisoner unlawfully convicted, is being denied medical care in a Russian penal colony in Buryatia. His health continues to deteriorate rapidly under illegal imprisonment. He suffers from severe shortness of breath, heartburn, and dental pain, and recently lost all hearing in one ear. Due to inadequate nutrition, Huhuryk experiences severe stomach pain after every meal. Despite numerous appeals, the prison administration ignores his worsening condition.
▶ Russian security forces in occupied Crimea illegally detained Ediie Muslimova, the 61-year-old editor-in-chief of the Crimean Tatar children’s magazine Armancık, holding her for approximately 36 hours. During her unlawful detention, Muslimova was subjected to lengthy interrogations, during which questions were asked about her professional activities and the magazine’s operations. Armancık, published since 2011, is a vital cultural project for the Crimean Tatar people.
▶ Crimean Tatar civilian journalist Seiran Saliiev, unlawfully sentenced to 16 years in prison, has been held under severe conditions in a Russian penal colony since July this year. His family was repeatedly denied visitation rights, prompting his wife to file a lawsuit.
The use of occupied Crimea as a springboard for attacks on Ukraine and the militarization of the peninsula
▶ According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian occupiers launched a series of attacks across Ukraine over the past week. These included two ballistic missiles (Iskander-M) and 232 strike UAVs, including Shahed drones and unidentified types, many originating from occupied Crimea. Russian forces continue to systematically target civilian infrastructure and residential buildings, utilizing Crimea as a base for their operations.
▶ Activists from the ATESH resistance movement have documented the transfer of Russian military equipment and air defense systems from Yevpatoriia to Kerch to protect the illegally constructed Crimean Bridge. Additionally, activists tracked the movement of a Pantsir-S1 surface-to-air missile and gun system along the highway in Sevastopol. In the same convoy, Russian forces were transporting ammunition and missiles concealed in civilian trucks. The occupiers persist in violating the rules of warfare, using civilians as shields and endangering the residents of occupied Crimea.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion and expanded its military aggression across Ukraine, occupied Crimea has been used as a military base to facilitate various forms of aggression. From the peninsula, the occupiers continue to launch strikes on Ukraine, including on civilian infrastructure.
The resistance movement of Ukrainian citizens in occupied Crimea
▶ Russia has already prosecuted 1047 people in occupied Crimea for expressing solidarity with Ukraine, who are being subjected to administrative penalties in the form of illegal fines and arrests.
▶ A resident of occupied Feodosiia was unlawfully detained by Russian security forces for communicating in Ukrainian on social media, expressing support for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, wishing victory for Ukraine, and opposing the Russian occupation of Crimea and other Ukrainian territories. The occupiers filed administrative charges against her for alleged “petty hooliganism” and “discrediting the Russian army.” The case materials have been sent to an occupation “court.”
▶ A resident of Simferopol publicly displayed support for Ukraine on social media by posting images of yellow-and-blue hearts, Ukrainian flags, and the national emblem. The man was unlawfully detained by the occupiers, and his case has been referred to the occupation “court.”
▶ In Crimea, an occupation “court” deemed the Ukrainian song “Good Evening, We Are from Ukraine” an unofficial military-patriotic slogan of Ukraine. Despite the absence of any explicit references to the Russian army in the song’s lyrics, the occupation administration detained a local woman over the song, accusing her of “discrediting the Russian Armed Forces.” The decision was based on the assumption that the song “could be used in materials aimed at discrediting” the Russian army. This interpretation allows for punitive measures against any word or phrase that could potentially be perceived as criticism of the occupation regime.
▶ Activists from the Yellow Ribbon movement organized a campaign in Crimea to mark the Day of Dignity and Freedom. They reported distributing approximately 60,000 flyers, stickers, ribbons, and banknotes on occupied territories this year to remind the occupiers they are unwelcome. In the past week alone, activists distributed over 100 flyers in cities across occupied Crimea.
▶ Activists from the Crimean Combat Seagulls movement continue to expose the personal data of collaborators and Russian war criminals operating in occupied Crimea.
▶ The Zla Mavka resistance movement maintains its daily journals, documenting the realities of life in occupied territories and sharing updates about the ongoing resistance.
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.