The state of health of a citizen of Ukraine Ihor Nazarenko, illegally detained by the occupation administration of the Russian Federation in the temporarily occupied territory of Donetsk region in the Makiyivka correctional colony No. 32, is critical, Ombudsman of the Verkhovna Rada for Human Rights Liudmyla Denisova said.

"Ihor has chronic illnesses: before his illegal imprisonment, he suffered a serious lung disease, which requires regular preventive therapy. Staying in the notorious Makiyivka correctional colony No. 32 in the absence of heating and unsanitary conditions can provoke a relapse. According to his family, Ihor has significantly lost weight and is seriously ill, probably on COVID-19. Medical assistance is not provided. Although he, as a doctor, helps his cellmates," Denisova wrote on Facebook on Tuesday.

In addition, according to the Ombudsman, representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations are not allowed to visit political prisoners.

"I appeal to the leadership of the ICRC in Ukraine to urgently visit Ihor Nazarenko, facilitate his immediate hospitalization and provide qualified medical care. I ask the OSCE coordinator in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group, Charlotte Relander, to personally intervene to provide appropriate assistance," Denisova said.

The Ombudsman recalled that on October 3, 2017, Nazarenko was abducted by the so-called "DPR MGB officers" from his workplace in a hospital in Donetsk, where he worked as a surgeon.

"For several days, his relatives could not establish his whereabouts, until representatives of the Russian occupation administration came home with a search because of his accusations of 'terrorist activities'. He was subjected to physical and psychological torture," she wrote.

On October 4, 2019, Nazarenko was sentenced for alleged "espionage" to eleven years of strict imprisonment.