Detention: On March 27, 2019, during mass searches of Crimean Tatar homes in the Kamyanka and Stroganovka neighborhoods of Simferopol, Russian security forces detained Yashar Muyedinov. He became one of the defendants in the so-called second Simferopol group of the 'Hizb ut-Tahrir case'. After his detention, he was placed in a pre-trial detention centre. Ukrainian human rights defenders and state bodies consider Muyedinov's persecution politically motivated.

Sentence: On November 24, 2022, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Yashar Muyedinov to 13 years in a high-security penal colony. The first four years were to be served in prison, followed by the remainder in the colony. After release, the court imposed one year of restricted freedom.

Muyedinov was found guilty of charges related to participation in the activities of the 'Hizb ut-Tahrir' organization and allegedly preparing for a violent seizure of power. Muyedinov and other defendants did not plead guilty and stated that they consider the persecution politically motivated.

Yashar Muyedinov was born on April 14, 1968, in the city of Syrdarya, Uzbekistan. His family was deported there by Soviet authorities in 1944 along with thousands of other Crimean Tatars. Yashar grew up in a large family with a brother and three sisters. In 1975, he started school in Syrdarya and completed ten grades.

In 1985, Muyedinov entered the Tashkent Transport Institute, where he trained as a builder. After the return of the Crimean Tatars to Crimea, he settled on the peninsula with his family, working as a builder. In 2012, he married Naile Ibragimova. The couple has eight children, six of whom were minors at the time of his arrest.

Before his arrest, Muyedinov was an active member of the Crimean Tatar community. He attended court hearings in politically motivated cases, supporting other Crimean Tatars persecuted by the Russian occupation authorities. His civic activity and participation in religious life were part of the context of his persecution.

On March 27, 2019, Russian security forces conducted large-scale searches in Simferopol. In total, 25 Crimean Tatars were persecuted within this group of cases. Among them were human rights defenders, citizen journalists, and activists, including Yashar Muyedinov. The Russian side accused them of involvement in 'Hizb ut-Tahrir'—an organization recognized as terrorist by Russia, though not banned in Ukraine. Ukrainian human rights defenders emphasize that the case materials lacked evidence of preparing terrorist acts or possessing weapons, and the persecution was primarily related to the religious and civic activities of Crimean Tatars.

After the 2022 sentence, Muyedinov remained in the Russian penal system. On February 1, 2024, the Military Court of Appeals in Vlasikha upheld his sentence. During the appeal process, Muyedinov called for an end to repressions in Crimea and stated that light follows darkness.

During imprisonment, Muyedinov's health deteriorated. In 2024, he reported severe pain in his right arm, swelling, dental issues, and leg swelling. According to his lawyer and wife, necessary medical examinations were not conducted for a long time. Muyedinov also reported physical force and psychological pressure by Russian prison staff in Dimitrovgrad.

In 2024, the Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea reported that Muyedinov was in a correctional colony in Dimitrovgrad, Ulyanovsk region, with numerous chronic illnesses, including hypertension, leg swelling, and back pain.

In 2025, he was transferred from Colony No. 5 in Koryazhma, Arkhangelsk region. At the end of 2025, Muyedinov was moved to Pre-trial Detention Centre No. 4 in Arkhangelsk, and in January 2026, he informed his family that he was in Yaroslavl and being transferred further. For over a month, his whereabouts were unknown to his relatives.

On February 9, 2026, Yashar Muyedinov arrived at Correctional Colony No. 9 in Omsk. The Russian penitentiary system did not disclose the reason for his transfer from Arkhangelsk region to Omsk. As of September 7, 2026, the latest available public data indicates that Muyedinov remains in IK-9 in Omsk.

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

Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic.

Last updated: 07.09.2026.