Arrest: On February 17, 2021, Yashar Shikhametov was detained by Russian security forces during mass searches of Crimean Tatar homes in temporarily occupied Crimea. The searches and detentions took place simultaneously in Simferopol, Bakhchisaray, Sevastopol, Bilohirsk, and the Feodosia district. Along with Yashar Shikhametov, Azamat Eyupov, Timur Yalkabov, Lenur Seydametov, Ernest Ibragimov, and Oleg Fedorov were detained. All detainees were taken to the FSB office in Simferopol.

Sentence: On September 9, 2022, the Southern District Military Court of the Russian Federation sentenced Yashar Shikhametov to 11 years in prison under part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation – 'participation in the activities of an organization recognized as terrorist.' The first four years of the sentence were to be served in a strict regime prison, followed by a strict regime colony. In December 2023, the Military Court of Appeal upheld the sentence. On September 19, 2024, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation also upheld the sentence in cassation.

Yashar Shikhametov was born on June 23, 1970, in Andijan, Fergana Region, Uzbekistan, to a family of Crimean Tatars deported from Crimea by Soviet authorities in 1944. At an early age, he was orphaned and raised in an orphanage in Namangan, where he completed nine years of schooling before enrolling in a trade college and starting a career in commerce.

In 1998, Yashar Shikhametov married Liliya Shikhametova. The couple has three children. In 2006, he returned to Crimea and settled in Sevastopol, bringing his family there the following year. Before his arrest, he worked, among other things, as a cook.

On February 17, 2021, in occupied Crimea, Russian security forces conducted extensive searches among the Crimean Tatar community. Shikhametov was detained along with five other Crimean Tatars. The Russian side accused them of involvement with the Islamic organization 'Hizb ut-Tahrir,' which Russia has recognized as terrorist and banned on its territory. Ukraine and most countries worldwide do not recognize this organization as terrorist. Human rights organizations view the persecution of Crimean Tatars in such cases as politically motivated and related to religious persecution.

On September 9, 2022, Shikhametov was sentenced to 11 years in prison. It is important to note that a separate material from the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea mistakenly lists the sentencing date as February 9, 2022. This date does not align with information from ZMINA and Suspilne Crimea, which cite September 9, 2022. The date of September 9, 2022, is confirmed by several independent authorized sources, and thus it is used in the biography.

During his imprisonment, Shikhametov's health significantly deteriorated. He suffers from chronic hypertension, heart, kidney, back, liver, and joint problems. In December 2023, during a session of the Military Court of Appeal in Vlasikha, he had to be carried out on a stretcher due to severe back pain. He also reported heart and kidney pain and hearing problems.
In April 2025, due to deteriorating health, Shikhametov was placed in a prison hospital in Saratov Region. He was troubled by heart and kidney pain. At that time, he was serving the first four years of his sentence in a prison in Balashov.

At the end of June 2025, Shikhametov was transferred to Correctional Colony No. 37 in the village of Yaya, Kemerovo Region, Russia. Thus, after completing the four-year term in Balashov prison, he was transferred to a colony for further serving of his sentence.

In October 2025, Yashar Shikhametov appealed to the court for release due to health reasons. He reported severe heart pain, kidney stones, and high blood pressure. The Yaysky District Court of Kemerovo Region denied the release. The Crimean Tatar Resource Center regarded this decision as another example of improper treatment of an illegally imprisoned Crimean political prisoner.

As of September 14, 2026, Yashar Shikhametov remains in Correctional Colony No. 37 in the village of Yaya, Kemerovo Region, Russia. His health condition has significantly worsened.

In August 2026, a doctor in the colony diagnosed him with osteochondrosis. Shikhametov also reports constant pain in his feet, knees, hip joints, and spine, heart pain, dental and vision problems, kidney stones, and an enlarged liver. He was assigned a third-degree disability. Due to spine and joint problems, he moves with crutches and, according to him, can walk about 10 meters per hour. Despite being assigned a disability, the wheelchair he was supposed to receive had not been provided as of the last report.

Information used from open sources: ZMINA, Crimean Tatar Resource Center, Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Suspilne Crimea, Association of Relatives of Kremlin Political Prisoners.

Photo: ZMINA.

Date updated: 14.09.2026.