Political Prisoners

Akimov Charaz

Detention: In late 2024, Russian FSB officers detained Yalta resident Charaz Akimov. According to Russian investigators, between 2023 and 2024, he allegedly maintained a confidential connection with a representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and transmitted information about the movements of military equipment and ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Later, the charges were reclassified from 'collaboration with a foreign state on a confidential basis' to 'treason.' Human rights defenders stated that the case was handled with gross violations of the principles of open justice, and the trial itself was conducted in a closed session. Sentence: On November 26, 2024, he was convicted under Part 1 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ('Repeated driving under the influence'); the sentence is unknown. On April 3, 2025, he was convicted under Article 275.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ('Confidential cooperation with a foreign state') and sentenced to five years in a general regime correctional colony. On October 6, 2025, the sentence was overturned on appeal, and the case was sent for a new trial, with charges changed to 'treason.' On March 13, 2026, the illegal 'Supreme Court of Crimea' sentenced him to 18 years and 20 days in a strict regime colony, plus one year and ten months of restricted freedom after release. Human rights defenders called this decision politically motivated.

Kruglov Albert

Detention: On November 16, 2022, Albert Kruglov, a resident of Alushta, was detained by FSB officers at the bus station in Simferopol. Russian authorities accused him of allegedly preparing to join the Ukrainian unit 'Azov' and 'preparing for high treason.' Sentence: On October 4, 2023, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Albert Kruglov to 8 years in a strict regime colony, with the first three years to be served in prison.

Bariev Ali

Detention: On April 26, 2018, in occupied Crimea (Bilohirsk), Russian security forces conducted extensive searches at 33 locations, including the stores of the Crimean retail chain 'Guzel' and the distribution company 'KrymOpt', as well as the homes of entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and activists of the Crimean Tatar movement. Searches were conducted at the homes of Ali Bariev, Asan Bariev, the Velilyaev brothers, and their adult children. After an interrogation lasting over three hours at the Investigative Committee of Russia for Crimea, Ali Bariev and Resul Velilyaev were arrested and unlawfully transferred from Crimea to Moscow's Lefortovo pre-trial detention centre. Sentence: Bariev and Velilyaev were charged under Article 238 of the Russian Criminal Code ('storage or sale of goods not meeting safety requirements, by a group of persons by prior conspiracy'; up to 6 years...

Karimov Alim

Arrest: On March 27, 2019, FSB officers conducted mass searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars in Simferopol and detained Crimean Tatar activist Alim Karimov. Following the search, he was arrested as part of the so-called 'second Simferopol group of the Hizb ut-Tahrir case,' accused of alleged participation in the activities of an organization Russia has designated as terrorist. Sentence: On January 10, 2023, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Alim Karimov to 13 years of imprisonment. The first five years are to be served in prison, with the remainder in a strict regime colony. Additionally, a year and a half of restricted freedom is imposed after release.

Alimov Refat

Detention: On April 18, 2016, FSB officers conducted searches in the homes of six Crimean Tatars and detained Refat Alimov as part of the so-called 'Yalta Hizb ut-Tahrir case'. Along with him, Emir-Usein Kuku, Muslim Aliyev, Vadim Siruk, Arsen Dzhepparov, and Inver Bekirov were also detained. Human rights defenders consider the case politically motivated. Sentence: On November 12, 2019, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don unlawfully sentenced Refat Alimov to 8 years in a high-security penal colony and 1 year of restricted freedom after release. He was found guilty under Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code ('participation in the activities of a terrorist organization') and Part 1 of Article 30, Article 278 of the Russian Criminal Code ('preparation for violent seizure of power'). On June 25, 2020, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation upheld the sentence without...

Alivapov Mueddin

Detention: On January 23, 2016, in Alupka and Simeiz on the southern coast of Crimea, three local residents were detained: Mueddin Alivapov, Sergey Kudryashov, and Vyacheslav Butnik. They were accused of arson attacks on cars in Greater Yalta — a total of 12 cars burned in January 2016. Notably, the arsons did not stop after their detention; a resident of Chelyabinsk was also arrested in the same case. Sentence: On January 18, 2018, the Russia-controlled Supreme Court of Crimea upheld Mueddin Alivapov's sentence of 4.5 years in a settlement colony and ordered compensation to the victims amounting to three million rubles. In comparison, the sentences for other defendants in the same case were reduced — Kudryashov to 3 years, Butnik to 2.5 years. After serving his sentence, Alivapov was released. Mueddin Alivapov...

Aliyev Murat

Arrest: On August 6, 2015, Murat (Murad) Aliyev was walking down a street in Crimea when three men in civilian clothes greeted him and put him in a car. He was taken to the Central District Department of Internal Affairs, where he was accused of robbery—allegedly attacking a person and taking a phone. At 2 a.m., he was transferred to a temporary detention facility, and in the morning, the court chose a preventive measure—imprisonment in the Simferopol pre-trial detention centre. Sentence: On the advice of a lawyer, who explained that fighting was pointless, Aliyev agreed to plead guilty for a lesser sentence. The prosecutor requested 3.5 years, the judge sentenced him to 2.5 years of imprisonment. After six months, he was transferred to Kerch Correctional Colony No. 2. After serving this sentence, he faced new charges under Article 280 of the Russian Criminal Code ('incitement to extremism') and Article 282...

Aliyev Rinat

Detention: On August 11, 2022, FSB officers conducted mass searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars in the Dzhankoy district of occupied Crimea. Following the search, Rinat Ablyatifovich Aliyev was detained. Along with him, Russian security forces detained several other Crimean Tatars in the so-called 'Dzhankoy Hizb ut-Tahrir case.' He was charged under Part 1 of Article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code ('organizing the activities of a terrorist organization') and Article 278 of the Russian Criminal Code ('violent seizure of power'). Ukrainian human rights organizations emphasized that the case is political, with charges traditionally based on religious conversations, expert conclusions, and anonymous witness testimonies. Sentence: On November 26, 2025, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced him to 15 years of imprisonment. 3...

Aliyeva Elviza

Detention: On October 15–16, 2025, Russian security forces detained her along with three other Crimean Tatar women: Esma Nimetulaeva, Fevziye Osmanova, and Nasiba Saidova. Sentence: As of September 6, 2026, Elviza Aliyeva remains in custody, with her case under investigation. She is charged under Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Russian Federation Criminal Code — "participation in the activities of an organization recognized as terrorist under Russian Federation law." This refers to alleged involvement with "Hizb ut-Tahrir." Human rights advocates view the prosecution of Crimean Tatars under this article as part of a systematic policy of repression in the occupied peninsula.

Aliyeva Gulsum

Detention: Gulsum Aliyeva was detained twice by occupation security forces and her home was searched. A criminal case was initiated against her under Part 1 of Article 282 of the Russian Criminal Code ('incitement of hatred or enmity') due to a repost on Facebook of an anti-Russian demotivator. Sentence: Gulsum Aliyeva was prosecuted as part of a criminal case. She is included in the lists of individuals persecuted by the occupation authorities, maintained by Ukrainian human rights organizations. Gulsum Aliyeva was born in 1996. She is the daughter of the well-known Crimean Tatar political prisoner Muslim Aliyev, a figure in the 'Yalta Hizb ut-Tahrir case', sentenced in 2019 to 19 years of imprisonment. Gulsum lived in Alushta. She has had a disability since childhood, which was one of the reasons for the family's move to Alushta, where better...

Ametov Enver

Detention: On March 27, 2019, Russian security forces conducted one of the largest waves of searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars in the Kamyanka and Stroganivka neighborhoods near Simferopol. After the search, Belyal Adilov was detained along with more than twenty other Crimean Tatar activists. He was charged under Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code ('participation in the activities of a terrorist organization') due to alleged involvement with the organization Hizb ut-Tahrir, which operates legally in Ukraine but is banned in Russia. Ukrainian

Ametov Ernes

Detention: On October 11, 2017, FSB officers conducted a series of searches in Bakhchisarai and other locations in occupied Crimea. Following the search, civic journalist and Crimean Tatar activist Ernes Ametov was detained. Along with him, Seiran Saliev, Marlen Asanov, Timur Ibragimov, Server Zekiryaev, and Memet Belyalov were also detained. Russian investigators accused them of participating in the activities of the organization Hizb ut-Tahrir under Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ('Participation in the activities of a terrorist organization'), which Russia considers terrorist, although it is not banned in Ukraine. Human rights defenders emphasized that the persecution is politically motivated and linked to civic journalism and the active stance of Crimean Tatars. Sentence: On September 16, 2020, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don fully acquitted Ernes Ametov due to a lack of evidence of his guilt. This was the first and, for a long time, the only acquittal in Hizb ut-Tahrir cases concerning Crimean Tatars. However, in March 2022, the appellate military court overturned the acquittal, and on December 29, 2022, during a retrial, Ernes was sentenced to 11 years in a strict regime colony. On December 15, 2023, the appellate court upheld this sentence.