09 September 2025
WEEKLY UPDATE ON THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED CRIMEA ON SEPTEMBER 9, 2025
Main news of the week
▶ Political prisoner Yashar Shykhametov, illegally sentenced by the Russian occupiers in 2022 to 11 years in prison, is in critical health condition. He has lost 30 kg, suffers from severe joint pain, and can barely move. He reports joint destruction, spine, liver, kidney, and heart problems, as well as deteriorating hearing and vision. He can only move with crutches and was recently transported in a wheelchair. The prison administration granted him additional rest, special footwear, and exemption from work, but the issues of hospitalization and disability status remain unresolved.
Crimes committed by the Russian Federation
▶ As of September 2025, Russia has illegally imprisoned 222 people in occupied Crimea on ethnic, religious, and political grounds, including 133 Crimean Tatars.
▶ Crimean Tatar political prisoner Bilial Adilov, father of six, illegally sentenced to 14 years in a high-security colony, has been held for about ten months in a cell-type facility (PKT) of Penal Colony No. 1 in Kyzyl (Tyva Republic, Russia).
▶ Crimean Tatar political prisoner Riza Omerov reported deteriorating eyesight and skin spots. He sees streaks before his left eye, while prescribed treatment has proven ineffective. He requires a professional examination and a comprehensive treatment plan. Omerov has also lost significant weight and has pale skin due to poor nutrition in the colony. Although parcels up to 20 kg are allowed every three months, his family cannot always send them because of the distance, and the local prison store offers very limited food options.
▶ Crimean Tatar political prisoner Uzeir Abdullaiev, unlawfully convicted by Russians in the so-called “Muslim case,” was unjustifiably placed in a punishment cell (SHIZO) for 15 days at Penal Colony No. 16 in Salavat (Bashkortostan, Russia). His mother believes the decision is connected to her complaints about pressure on his younger brother, political prisoner Teimur Abdullaiev, who is serving an unlawful sentence in another Salavat colony and has spent over one thousand days in SHIZO. Following these complaints, addressed to Putin, the Russian Prosecutor General, and the Human Rights Commissioner, pressure on the family intensified. Uzeyir suffers from severe health problems, including leg swelling, a congenital heart defect, and allergic rhinitis. Doctors had previously confirmed that isolation was medically contraindicated for him. Nevertheless, he remains in SHIZO until September 20.
▶ Crimean political prisoner Dzhebbar Bekirov, illegally sentenced by a Russian court to 17 years in prison, was unlawfully transferred from Prison No. 2 in Vladimir, Russia. According to his wife, he is currently being held in Pretrial Detention Center No. 6 in St. Petersburg and is expected to be moved to Murmansk, more than 3,500 km from Crimea.
The use of occupied Crimea as a springboard for attacks on Ukraine and the militarization of the peninsula
▶ Activists of the resistance movement ATESH conducted reconnaissance of the “Black Sea Fleet Communications Repair Plant” of the Russian Ministry of Defense in Sevastopol, which remains a key communications hub for Russian forces. Despite the official announcement of its closure in October 2024, the plant continues operating as part of the military infrastructure, repairing and servicing communications equipment that ensures coordination and command of Black Sea Fleet units.
▶ According to the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, over the past week Russian occupiers have carried out a series of large-scale combined attacks on the territory of Ukraine — including 1723 strike UAVs of the Shahed, Shahed-Heran, and Gerbera types, 16 Kalibr cruise missiles, and 4 Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles, launched in part from the territory of occupied Crimea and Black Sea.
Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion and spread its armed aggression throughout Ukraine, occupied Crimea has been used by Russia as a military base for spreading aggression in various forms. From the peninsula, the occupiers continue to launch attacks on the territory of Ukraine, including on civilian infrastructure.
The resistance movement of Ukrainian citizens in occupied Crimea
▶ Russia has already prosecuted 1554 people in occupied Crimea for expressing solidarity with Ukraine, who are being subjected to administrative penalties in the form of illegal fines and arrests.
▶ Activists of the Yellow Ribbon movement continue to demonstrate resistance in Crimea—this time, patriotic stickers and yellow ribbons appeared in Simferopol, Sevastopol, and Yalta. They also released photos and videos showing large-scale deforestation along the Sevastopol–Yalta highway. According to activists, the occupation administration chose to expand the road by cutting down thousands of trees, instead of proper planning such as bypasses or additional junctions. As a result, the protective forest strip that shielded the road from dust, heat, and landslides is being destroyed. No compensatory planting plans have been announced.
▶ Activists of the Crimean Combat Seagulls continue to expose the personal data of collaborators and Russian war criminals in occupied Crimea.
▶ The Zla Mavka resistance movement burned the occupiers’ flag on a beach in Sevastopol and carried out actions in temporarily occupied Alushta and Simferopol. They emphasize that their activities are meant to remind the Russian occupiers of the resilience of the Ukrainian people and the ongoing fight for freedom.
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.