Crimean Tatar Khalil Ametov Sentenced to 5 Years, Highlighting Repression

The occupation court in Crimea sentenced Crimean Tatar Khalil Ametov to 5 years in prison, accusing him of participating in the Noman Chelebidzhikhan battalion. He was detained in the Kherson region, transferred to Simferopol, and is currently being held in the Vladimir prison.

According to the Crimean Tatar Resource Center, Russian authorities have sentenced Crimean Tatar Khalil Ametov to five years in prison for allegedly participating in the Noman Chelebidzhikhan battalion. He was detained in August 2022 in the Kherson region, then transferred to a pre-trial detention center in Simferopol, and is currently serving his sentence in the Vladimir prison in Russia.

In June 2022, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation recognized this battalion as a "terrorist organization" and banned its activities. This decision triggered a new wave of repression against Crimean Tatars.

According to media reports, the 48th Brigade was formed from the Noman Chelebidzhikhan Fire Support Company in 2023. Its backbone consists of Crimean Tatar and Ukrainian volunteers, including internally displaced persons from the temporarily occupied Crimea. The personnel distinguished themselves in the battles in Kyiv region and the Battle of Bakhmut.

According to the CTRC, since 2014, at least 55 people have been persecuted for their participation in this battalion - 19 in Crimea and 36 in the temporarily occupied Kherson region after the outbreak of full-scale war.

The Crimean Tatar Resource Center called for the immediate release of all political prisoners and the reversal of unjust sentences. The organization appeals to the international community to increase pressure on Russia and impose personal sanctions against those involved in human rights violations.

Also, political prisoner from Kherson Iryna Gorobtsova's sentence of 10.5 years in prison on trumped-up charges of espionage was upheld. The appeal hearing took place in early April in Moscow, after which the woman was transferred to Crimea, where she was previously held.

Another example of repression is that a Crimean artist was sentenced to 15 years in prison for an anti-war action: he poured blue and yellow paint on the facade of the occupation administration. Despite the pressure and ill-treatment, the man does not give up - he draws and writes letters from behind bars, supporting the spirit of resistance.

Meanwhile, on April 9, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted an important resolution that for the first time directly recognizes the need to compensate Ukraine for the damage caused by Russia since 2014, including the occupation of Crimea.

Анна Бальчінос