10 March 2026
WEEKLY UPDATE ON THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED CRIMEA ON MARCH 10, 2026
Main news of the week
▶ The General Staff reported that on March 3, the military struck the “Sopka-2” and “Kasta-2E2” air target detection radar stations. Also on the night of March 7-8, the military struck a “Pantsir S-1” anti-aircraft missile and gun complex, as well as a “BK-16” boat. In particular, the Defense Forces struck an “Orion” UAV control point near the Krasnopilskyi district.
▶ The Special Operations Forces of the AFU struck the “Oborona-14” and “Nebo-U” radar stations, as well as 2 stations in Yevpatoriia.
Crimes committed by the Russian Federation
▶ As of early February 2026, 284 individuals are subject to judicial persecution in occupied Crimea, 159 of whom are Crimean Tatars.
▶ Crimean Tatar political prisoner Shaban Umerov requires urgent medical attention, including prosthetics and the extraction of damaged teeth. He is currently being held in correctional colony No. 17 in Murmansk. Due to his dental problems, the political prisoner cannot eat properly and also complains of high blood pressure and headaches.
▶ The health of Rustem Musarov has deteriorated—he has lost 10 kilograms and also suffers from headaches. He has been held for more than 45 days in a punishment cell at a correctional colony in the Saratov region of the RF. He has been imprisoned since 2021 on suspicion of participation in the “Hizb ut-Tahrir” organization, which is considered a terrorist organization in Russia. In May 2023, he was sentenced to 12 years of imprisonment.
▶ The Russians forced Crimean political prisoner Tofik Abdulhaziiev to sign a document about his “good health.” This was done under psychological duress; due to his deteriorating vision, Tofik could not even read the documents, and the doctors refused to read the text to him. Only at the court hearing did Tofik Abdulhaziiev learn which documents he had signed. He was detained after a search in 2019, and in 2022, a Rostov court sentenced him to 12 years in a strict-regime colony. While imprisoned, his health has significantly worsened; in particular, he was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.
▶ According to the “Vidsich” movement, the occupation administration is attempting to forcibly connect local residents to the Russian messenger “MAX,” through which they can exercise digital control. The platform is planned to be integrated with Russia’s state services system. This will give the Russians access to the personal data of registrants.
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 AFU, the Russian occupiers carried out a series of massive combined attacks on the territory of Ukraine throughout the week. This included over 1,300 strike UAVs of the “Shahed,” “Gerbera,” and “Italmas” types, 2 “Zircon” anti-ship missiles, and 2 “Iskander-M” missiles, launched from occupied Crimea and the Black Sea. The Russian invaders continue to attack Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the winter, carrying out another act of terror against the civilian population.
▶ In Crimea, preparations are once again underway for the military-patriotic game “Zarnitsa-2.0.” At a meeting of the headquarters and working group, the Russian occupiers discussed evaluation criteria, game stages, and the composition of the judges. This year, the Russians want to focus on skills for operating unmanned systems. In this way, the Russian occupying “administration” is conducting a deliberate militarization of education, which may subsequently lead to the service of these same children in the ranks of the Russian Armed Forces.
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
▶ In Simferopol, Alushta, and Sevastopol, activists of the “Yellow Ribbon” movement held an action for Taras Shevchenko’s birthday on March 9. In particular, references to the Kobzar’s words “Struggle, and you will overcome” appeared in the temporarily occupied cities.
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.