The first victim of the occupation of Crimea: 10 years since the detention of Reshat Ametov

10 years ago, on March 3, 2014, Crimean Tatar activist Reshat Ametov went to the central square of Simferopol to protest against the occupation of the Crimean peninsula. It was a one-person picket. He also planned to sign up as a volunteer at the military registration and enlistment office.

He was detained by the so-called “Crimean self-defense” in the presence of Russian military personnel, which was recorded on video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11S2Vhkr-bc. No verified or confirmed information about Ametov’s movements after his kidnapping has been made public.

There is information that immediately after the kidnapping, Reshat Ametov was taken to the office of the “Russian Unity” in Simferopol, where at that time one of the headquarters of the so-called “Crimean Self-Defense”, a group that also participated in the occupation of Crimea, was located. Information about his further movements is unknown.

Refat Ametov, the activist’s brother, recalls: “These [actions of the Crimean Tatars of that period] were actions for peace, and Reshat came out with a peaceful, but completely different idea – “I have the right!” – he believes that Reshat did not intend to fight anyone, but simply declared his right to be there. But for the occupiers, this obviously turned out to be the same as a declaration of war. According to Refat, that is the reason for the murder of his brother.

The body of Reshat Ametov, with signs of torture and violent death, was found on March 15 in the village of Zemlianichne, Belogorsk region of Crimea. His body showed signs of numerous tortures, his head was tied with tape, and handcuffs were lying next to him.

The criminals have not yet been punished. The investigation is supposedly being conducted by the occupation administrations, and Ukrainian law enforcement authorities have no access to the case file or the crime scene.

The murder of Reshat Ametov may well be qualified as a crime against humanity and as a war crime, which is an intentional homicide. As of now, exactly in this context, the Ukrainian law enforcement authorities qualify the murder of an activist.

In 2015, Reshat Ametov was honored with the People’s Hero of Ukraine title (posthumously), and in 2017 he was recognized as the Hero of Ukraine (posthumously).