Residents of occupied Crimea have begun to leave due to draft notices

<span><span><span><span><span><span>Due to a new wave of forced mobilization in occupied Crimea, residents of the peninsula—particularly Crimean Tatars—are seeking ways to leave the Russian Federation en masse. Human rights activists are urging people to act proactively and leave before they are placed on a wanted list.</span></span></span></span></span></span>

<span><span><span><span><span><span>This was reported by the Crimean Tatar Resource Center.</span></span></span></span></span></span>

<span><span><span><span><span><span> Eskender Bariev, chairman of the board of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center and a member of the Mejlis, said that more than a dozen cases of mobilization summonses being issued for the Russian army have already been reported in Crimea. People, particularly Crimean Tatars, who may be subject to mobilization are turning to the Crimean Tatar Resource Center for help in leaving the region.</span></span></span></span></span></span>

<span><span><span><span><span><span>“And people are turning to the Crimean Tatar Resource Center when it comes to those who are actually trying right now—including representatives of the indigenous Crimean Tatar people—to leave the peninsula and the Russian Federation,” he noted.</span></span></span></span></span></span>

<span><span><span><span><span><span>The human rights activist emphasized that in cases where a person has already been served with a draft notice but has not yet been placed on a wanted list, it is important to act in advance. Once a person is placed on a wanted list, opportunities to leave may be significantly limited.</span></span></span></span></span></span>

<span><span><span><span><span><span>Previously, a man</span></span></span></span></span></span>from occupied Crimea who had fought on the side of the Russian army found himself in Ukrainian captivity just three days later. He now believes that the Ukrainian Armed Forces saved his life. 

For the second year in a row, Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories have received the lowest freedom rating in the world according to Freedom House. They ranked below North Korea, South Sudan, and Gaza.

Specifically, Crimea and significant portions of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions received a score of −1 out of 100 on the Freedom Index in 2026. All key categories of political rights and civil liberties were rated at 0 points (out of a maximum of 4), with the exception of one category regarding personal social freedoms (1/4).

Юлія Калабайда