Political Prisoners

Zarivny Oleksandr

Detention: On March 17, 2022, around six in the morning, Russian military forces stormed his home, threatened his wife and daughter with weapons, and took him away in handcuffs to an unknown location. During the detention, the occupiers explicitly stated that the reason was his membership in a veterans' organization of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO). According to his wife, Yuliia Zarivna, the Russian military had lists of former Ukrainian servicemen, law enforcement officers, and civic activists they planned to detain. Sentence: After Oleksandr Zarivny was abducted, his family lost all contact with him. According to testimonies from people released from Russian captivity, he might have initially been held in a temporary detention facility in occupied Kherson and later possibly transferred to occupied...

Zekeriaev Leman

Detention: On January 24, 2023, searches were conducted in the Dzhankoy district (temporarily occupied Crimea), after which six Crimean Tatars were detained and taken to Simferopol, where they were arrested the next day and sent to pre-trial detention centre No. 1. Builders Osman Abdurazakova and Leman Zekeriaev, entrepreneurs Khalil Mambetov and Refat Seydametov, and appliance repairmen Ekrem Krosh and Ayder Asanov are accused of participating in the activities of the Islamic political party "Hizb ut-Tahrir." Sentence: On April 29, 2025, the Southern District Military Court of the Russian Federation (Rostov-on-Don) sentenced Leman Zekeriaev to 14 years of imprisonment. The first 4 years are to be served in prison, the remainder in a strict regime colony. Additionally, 1 year of restricted freedom was imposed after release. Russian authorities accused him of...

Zekiryaev Server

Arrest: On October 11, 2017, security forces conducted searches among Crimean Tatars in Bakhchisaray. They detained six men — Server Zekiryaev, Timur Ibragimov, Marlen (Suleiman) Asanov, Memet Belyalov, Seyran Saliyev, and Ernes Ametov. They were accused in the so-called 'Crimean Muslims case'. Server Zekiryaev was later transferred to Rostov-on-Don. Sentence: On September 16, 2020, the Southern District Military Court of the Russian Federation in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Server Zekiryaev to 13 years in a strict regime colony. He was found guilty of participating in the activities of the organization 'Hizb ut-Tahrir', which Russia considers terrorist, although it is not banned in Ukraine and most countries worldwide. On March 14, 2022, the Russian Military Appeals Court upheld the sentence. Server...

Zeytullaev Ruslan

Detention: On January 23, 2015, FSB officers conducted searches in the homes of four Crimean Tatars in Sevastopol and detained Ruslan Zeytullaev, Nuri Primov, Ferat Saifullaev, and Rustem Vaitov. They were accused of participating in the activities of the Islamic political organization Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is legal in Ukraine but banned in Russia. Human rights defenders emphasize that the case is politically motivated and was one of the first so-called 'Hizb ut-Tahrir cases' in Crimea. Sentence: Initially, on September 7, 2016, the North Caucasus District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Ruslan Zeytullaev to 7 years in prison. After an appeal by the prosecution, the sentence was overturned, and during a new trial on July 27, 2017, the Supreme Court of Russia increased the sentence to 15 years in a high-security prison...

Zhigalov Serhii

Detention: On August 24, 2022, FSB officers conducted a series of searches in the homes of believers in Sevastopol. Following the searches, Serhii Zhigalov and another believer, Viktor Kudinov, were detained. Two days later, the court placed them under house arrest, which was later changed to a prohibition of certain actions. Russian investigators charged Zhigalov under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Russian Criminal Code ('Organization of the activities of an extremist organization'), claiming he organized online worship services and coordinated the activities of the Jehovah's Witnesses community. Ukrainian and international human rights organizations emphasize that the persecution is solely related to exercising the right to freedom of religion, not any violent activities. Sentence: In February 2025, the Russia-controlled Gagarinsky District Court of Sevastopol found Serhii Zhigalov guilty and sentenced him to 6 years in a general regime colony with 1 year of restricted freedom after release. He was taken into custody immediately after the verdict was announced. Subsequently, the appellate court upheld the sentence. The human rights project 'Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial' recognized Serhii Zhigalov as a political prisoner, and Ukrainian human rights organizations view his case as an example of religious persecution in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea.

Zhuk Yaroslav

Detention: On June 18, 2022, Russian military abducted Yaroslav Zhuk along with another volunteer, Illia Yenin. After detention, he was held in a basement for over a month and a half without contact with family or a lawyer. In July 2022, the occupation administration released a video of a so-called 'confession' in which Zhuk allegedly admitted involvement in an attempt on the life of Melitopol's occupation education department head, Olena Shapurova. Later, Yaroslav stated that the video was recorded after severe torture with electric shocks and psychological pressure. Human rights defenders consider the case fabricated and emphasize that evidence obtained under torture cannot be admissible. Sentence: On June 25, 2024, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don found Yaroslav Zhuk guilty of an alleged 'act of international terrorism' and sentenced him to 14 years in prison. According to the sentence, he must serve the first 4 years in prison, with the remainder in a high-security colony. The Russian prosecution demanded 27 years of imprisonment. The defense insisted that Zhuk is a civilian illegally abducted from occupied Ukrainian territory and that all key evidence was obtained under torture. On April 23, 2025, the Russian Military Appeals Court upheld the sentence.

Zhytzkyi Petro

Arrest: According to the Russian investigation, at the end of 2022, he allegedly established contact with a representative of the Security Service of Ukraine and became part of an underground group operating in occupied Crimea. The Russian side claims Zhytzkyi received coordinates of weapon and explosive caches, made an improvised explosive device, and monitored former Ukrainian MP Oleh Tsaryov, who has cooperated with Russia since 2014 and was convicted in absentia by a Ukrainian court for crimes against the state. Ukrainian media report that the Russian investigation linked Petro Zhytzkyi to an assassination attempt on Tsaryov in October 2023 in Yalta. The veracity of these accusations cannot be independently verified as the criminal case materials remain inaccessible to the public, and the trial was held behind closed doors. Sentence: On March 11, 2025, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don found Petro Zhytzkyi guilty under several articles of the Russian Criminal Code, including state treason, training for terrorist activities, attempted assassination of a public figure, illegal possession of explosives and weapons, and manufacturing an improvised explosive device. He was sentenced to 24 years in prison: the first 5 years in prison, the remainder in a high-security colony. He was also fined 800,000 Russian rubles and subjected to further restrictions on freedom. Ukrainian media emphasize that the case was based solely on Russian investigation materials, with no independent verification of evidence conducted.

Ziyadinov Emil

Detention: On July 7, 2020, in the settlement of Oktyabrske (Krasnogvardeysky district), temporarily occupied Crimea, Emil was detained at his home by FSB officers. He was accused of organizing a cell of the Islamic political party Hizb ut-Tahrir, banned and recognized as a terrorist organization in Russia since 2003. Before 2014, the organization had thousands of supporters among Crimean Muslims and held public events, now it operates freely in Ukraine and most European countries. Sentence: On April 19, 2022, the Southern District Military Court of the Russian Federation in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Emil Ziyadinov to 17 years in prison. He was found guilty of organizing activities of the Hizb ut-Tahrir organization and allegedly preparing for the violent seizure of power. On November 7, 2022, the Appeal...

Ziza Bohdan

Arrest: On May 16, 2022, Ukrainian artist and activist Bohdan Ziza was detained by officers of the Federal Security Service (FSB) of the Russian Federation in occupied Crimea, in the city of Yevpatoria, following a protest action where he poured yellow and blue paint on the local administration building and threw a Molotov cocktail at it. He was then taken to an FSB office and later placed in a pre-trial detention centre in Simferopol. Russian authorities classified his actions as a criminal offense related to a 'terrorist act' and 'vandalism', also attributing political motivation. Sentence: On June 6, 2023, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Bohdan Ziza to 15 years in a high-security penal colony. The initial years of the sentence are to be served in prison, followed by time in a colony. Russian authorities classified his actions as a 'terrorist act', 'vandalism', and 'calls for terrorism', while Ukrainian human rights organizations view the case as politically motivated and linked to persecution for his pro-Ukrainian stance.

Zorin Ihor

Detention: On May 3, 2023, the Federal Security Service of Russia announced the detention of Ihor Zorin. Russian authorities claimed he was part of a group planning explosions in Crimea on the orders of Ukrainian special services. Sentence: As of July 18, 2026, no sentence has been issued. Ihor Zorin remains in custody. The Russian Federation accuses him under Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ('treason'), Part 2 of Article 205 ('terrorist act'), Part 2 of Article 205.4 ('participation in a terrorist community'), and Part 4 of Article 222.1 ('illegal handling of explosives'). The case is under consideration by the court of first instance.