01 October 2024
WEEKLY UPDATE ON THE SITUATION IN OCCUPIED CRIMEA ON OCTOBER 1, 2024
Main news of the week
▶ Rustem Seithalilov, a Crimean activist illegally sentenced to 14 years in prison by Russia, was transported unlawfully from a jail in the Ulyanovsk region of Russia to an unknown destination. The Russian occupiers arrested Rustem in 2019 for supporting illegally imprisoned captives of the Kremlin and their families.
Crimes committed by the Russian Federation
▶ As of October 2024, Russia has illegally imprisoned 218 people in occupied Crimea on ethnic, religious, and political grounds, including 132 Crimean Tatars.
▶ Employees of the occupation pre-trial detention center refused to accept documents confirming the visual impairment and chronic illness of Oleksandr Sizikov, who was illegally sentenced to 17 years in prison by the Russians. On the evening of September 14, Russian invaders abducted Sizikov from his home and transferred him to the detention center in Bakhchysarai without allowing him to pack his belongings. On the night of September 19, he was transferred to the Pre-trial Detention Center 1.
▶ The occupiers refused to transfer Crimean civil journalist Remzi Bekirov closer to Crimea. The activist, illegally sentenced to 20 years in prison, is held in a penal colony in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia, 5,000 kilometers from home. The man is not allowed to see his family, and the Russians forbid him even to correspond with his relatives.
▶ For three weeks now, the location of Crimean Tatar political prisoner Aziz Akhtemov has been unknown. On September 4, the occupiers illegally transferred the political prisoner from the jail of the Russian city of Yeniseisk, Krasnoyarsk Krai, to another colony. The security forces refuse to inform his wife where exactly he was transferred.
▶ The occupation “court” upheld the unlawful sentence of Crimean Tatar activist and imam Raif Fevziiev. The Russian occupiers illegally sentenced the man to 17 years in prison on political grounds.
▶ Illegally sentenced to 13 years in prison, 56-year-old Crimean Tatar activist Yashar Muedinov complained of severe pain in his arm and swelling in his legs. The political prisoner told his lawyer that no surgeon in the prison could examine him, and the Russian occupiers did not provide proper medical care.
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 Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russian occupiers carried out a series of massive attacks on Ukrainian territory during the week. These attacks included the use of 4 Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles X-31P, 1 anti-radar missile, 2 X-22 cruise missiles, and 127 Shahed strike UAVs, including from occupied Crimea and the Black Sea.
▶ Activists of the ATESH resistance movement report that the occupiers are installing new engineering fortifications in Yevpatoriia. Fortifications have appeared at both entrances to the city, indicating an increase in the militarization of the peninsula. In addition, activists report that the Russian occupation forces are using civilian residents of occupied Crimea to build fortifications near Russian military facilities on the peninsula.
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 979 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 Yevpatoriia was speaking negatively about the Russian occupation of Crimea and Russian occupation forces on his social media and expressed waiting for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to liberate the peninsula. Russian security forces detained the man and sent the materials to the occupation “court.”
▶ A Crimean resident posted Ukrainian symbols on a social network and liked posts condemning the actions of the Russian occupation army. The occupiers detained the man and sent the materials to the occupation “court.”
▶ A resident of the village of Pervomaiske, Kurmansk district, spat into a box in a local store for donations to the Russian military in the war against Ukraine. In addition, the man used Ukrainian national symbols in his avatar in the messenger. Russian security forces detained the man, and he faces criminal charges.
▶ Activists of the Yellow Ribbon movement from the towns of Shcholkine, Kerch, Sudak, and Sevastopol joined the traditional protest action: They hung yellow ribbons and painted patriotic graffiti reminding the residents that Crimea is Ukraine. Other protests were held in Sevastopol, Simferopol, and Yevpatoriia. Activists also report that the Russian invaders, under the guise of “anti-terrorist training,” are actively looking for men of military service age to be illegally conscripted for the war against Ukraine.
▶ Activists of 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 continues to write diaries, which inform about the realities of life in the occupied territories.
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.