~Russia illegally detains 25,000 Kremlin prisoners

According to the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, this is the number of civilians abducted by the Russian Federation.

The ZMINA Human Rights Centre has found that at least 21 prisoners require urgent medical care and may die unless they receive it. 

During the full-scale invasion, the National Police began investigating the enforced disappearance of 8,800 people. Russian Children's Ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova claims Russia has illegally abducted over 700,000 children from Ukraine.

The Media Initiative for Human Rights has identified about one hundred places where abducted civilians are held.

The Mission of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Qırım) confirms 209 illegally imprisoned Ukrainian citizens, 126 of whom are Qırımtatarlar.

During the full-scale war, 3,135 Ukrainian citizens were returned to Ukraine, including 150 civilians.

On March 5, Russian security forces conducted a series of searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars in the temporarily occupied Bakhchysarai (Bağçasaray) and the city and district of Dzhankoi (Canköy). As a result of the searches, Russians detained ten people.

The Crimean Human Rights Group reports. 

The Crimean Tatars were detained on charges of alleged involvement in Hizb ut-Tahrir (an international Islamic political party that is banned in Russia but not banned in Ukraine — ed.) After the searches, Remzi Kurtnezirov, Nariman Ametov, Enver Khalilayev, Arsen Kashka, Ali Mamutov, Vahid Mustafayev, Mustafa Abduramanov, Memet Lumanov, Aziz Azizov and Rustem Osmanov were detained. All of them are accused of allegedly violating Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (Organisation of the activities of a terrorist organisation and participation in the activities of such an organisation).

According to the Crimean Solidarity, Remzi Kurtnezirov is a former imam of the mosque in Lobanove (Cadra), and due to health reasons, he has recently stopped conducting religious rites.

In 2017, Remzi Kurtnezirov suffered three strokes, has type II diabetes, has problems with blood pressure, and the right side of his body is not working. The Crimean Tatar has an indefinite type II disability and a postoperative condition after skull trepanation.

Arsen Kashka regularly attended court hearings on politically motivated cases, supported the families of political prisoners, participated in rallies and helped to carry out parcels to places of detention. He also took an active part in organising iftar and festive events.

Vahid Mustafayev is the current imam at the Lobanove (Cadra) mosque.

Enver Khalilayev lived next to the mosque and took an active part in organising iftar and festive events.

Memet Lumanov, Aziz Azizov, Rustem Osmanov and Mustafa Abduramanov are activists who regularly attended court hearings and helped the families of Crimean political prisoners. They had been previously detained by the occupiers and brought to administrative responsibility.

On the evening of March 5, the so-called "Kyiv District Court" in Simferopol (Aqmescit) issued a "ruling" on the arrest of Memet Lumanov, Aziz Azizov, Rustem Osmanov and Mustafa Abduramanov.

According to activist Lutfiye Zudieva, they will stay in the detention centre until May 5, 2024.

In the evening of March 6, the 'court' sent Remzi Kurtnezirov, Ali Mamutov and Nariman Ametov to the detention centre for two months.

A Russian court has illegally sentenced two members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces to life in prison for the alleged "murder" of civilians in Mariupol.

The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation reports.

Ukrainian prisoners of war Oleksandr Pecharskyi and Serhii Heorhiu are accused of allegedly killing three people in the temporarily occupied Mariupol, Donetsk region. 

It will be recalled that the Geneva Conventions treat such "trials" of prisoners of war as a crime.

At a closed session, the Lefortovo Court of Moscow extended the detention for another two months — until May 4, 2024. 

The Crimean Human Rights Group writes about this with reference to the brother of the detainee, Aziz Umerov.

The trial was held in a closed format without the admission of relatives, journalists and anyone other than lawyers. 

In the Russian Federation, Lenie Umerova is suspected of allegedly being a "spy". Crimean Tatar Lenia Umerova was detained on the Russian-Georgian border in December 2022. She was trying to get to the temporarily occupied Crimea to visit her father, who has cancer.

Umerova is currently being held in Moscow. She faces up to 20 years of illegal detention.

Russian security forces have detained a Ukrainian citizen in the temporarily occupied Luhansk for financial support of the Azov Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine.

The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation reports.

The Russians claim that the Ukrainian made at least eight money transfers to support the brigade from February to November 2023. 

Since the Russians have recognised the brigade as an alleged "terrorist organisation", the detained Ukrainian is now accused of allegedly "financing terrorism".

Now, the so-called "court" has to choose a preventive measure for him. 

The Federal Penitentiary Service of the Russian Federation refuses to transfer political prisoner Remzi Bekirov to a colony closer to the temporarily occupied Crimea.

Crimean Solidarity reports this. 

According to Bekirov's defence lawyer, the Federal Penitentiary Service refused to transfer the political prisoner to a colony in Rostov region because "an average level of response" had been introduced in correctional institutions in eight regions of Russia since February 24. 

Remzi Bekirov was also denied a transfer to the neighbouring Stavropol Krai. Allegedly, the lawyer says it is only necessary to appeal the place of the transfer after the prisoner has been transferred.

In addition, Bekirov is still unable to get the transfer period counted as part of his prison term.

The political prisoner has filed an administrative lawsuit with the 2nd Eastern District Military Court of Chita so that judges can count the period of his transfer as part of his prison term. In September 2023, the journalist managed to have the days he spent in the pre-trial detention centre included in this period. However, there is still no response from the Chita court.

If the judges do decide to transfer him, Bekirov may be transferred to a high-security colony, where he will serve the rest of his sentence as early as March. If not, then only in June.

Remzi Bekirov is a citizen journalist who filmed searches and trials of politically motivated cases against residents of the temporarily occupied Crimea (Qırım). He was detained on March 27, 2019, during mass searches of Crimean Tatars on the peninsula. In 2022, Remzi Bekirov was sentenced to 19 years in prison for allegedly participating in a terrorist organisation.

Rustem Murasov, a defendant in the case of the Second Sevastopol Group, sentenced to 12 years in prison, said that he was being transferred to Vladimir. 

The convict reported this in a letter obtained by the Crimean Solidarity.

According to Murasov, his transfer began on February 17, 2024. He left the Novocherkassk detention centre with three other defendants in the case. 

In Perm, Rustem Murasov was sent to temporary detention in the ICH-29, and the others were sent directly to the pre-trial detention centre in Perm.

On August 17, 2021, new mass searches took place in Crimea (Qırım) in the homes of Muslim Crimean Tatars in the Simferopol (Aqmescit) and Bakhchysarai (Bağçasaray) districts of Crimea (Qırım) and the Balaklava (Balıqlava) and Nakhimov districts of Sevastopol (Aqyar). Russian law enforcement agencies carried out the investigative measures. 

Then, the Russians detained five people: Rustem Murasov, Rustem Tairov, Dzhebbar Bekirov, Zavur Abdullayev and Raif Fevzi.