25 February 2025
Crimean Tatar Activist Tofik Abdulhaziiev Is Diagnosed with Lymph Node Tuberculosis
The unlawfully imprisoned Crimean Tatar activist Tofik Abdulhaziiev, sentenced to 12 years in a penal colony, has been diagnosed with lymph node tuberculosis. This information was reported by his wife, Aliie Kurtametova, who received an official response from the medical staff of Tuberculosis Hospital No. 1 in Chelyabinsk.
Tofik Abdulhaziiev has been in a medical facility for approximately a year, where he was previously diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis. However, the disease has since progressed, affecting the intrathoracic lymph nodes. Doctors have stated that the illness is currently in the phase of resorption and consolidation, indicating a severe course of the disease.
“This stage of the disease is extremely difficult to endure. It is not commonly observed among patients. Given the previously described conditions of his detention, he has once again found himself on the verge of death,” noted Aliie Kurtametova.
Reports about Tofik Abdulhaziiev’s tuberculosis emerged as early as spring 2024. In March, he was transferred in critical condition from Verkhneuralsk Prison to Prison Hospital No. 3 in Chelyabinsk, where he was placed in intensive care two weeks later.
After being transferred to prison in 2023, Abdulhaziiev experienced rapid weight loss and severe joint pain in his hands. By April 2024, his health had significantly deteriorated. Medical evaluations confirmed bilateral pneumonia, anemia, mild left-sided hydrothorax (fluid accumulation in the lungs), chronic heart failure, gastritis, kidney stones, and heart disease.
His lawyer and wife insist on his immediate release, emphasizing that he requires comprehensive treatment, proper care, and adequate nutrition, all of which are unattainable under prison conditions.
Despite his severe medical condition, in August 2024, the so-called “court” denied Tofik Abdulhaziiev’s request for release. In February 2025, the activist informed his family that his health had further deteriorated, with persistent high fever and worsening coughing fits.
Additionally, according to his wife, he was placed in a punitive confinement cell within Prison Hospital No. 3, where he was subjected to damp and cold conditions.
We urge the international community to intensify pressure on Russia to secure the release of all unlawfully imprisoned individuals and ensure they receive proper medical care. Furthermore, we emphasize the need for strengthening measures against the aggressor state to achieve the liberation of occupied territories, as only through complete de-occupation can the systematic practices of unlawful imprisonment, political persecution, and repression on ethnic and religious grounds be effectively halted.