Russian court sentences five Crimean Tatars to 13 years in prison each
A Russian court has issued verdicts in the case of the so-called "second Simferopol group of Hizb ut-Tahrir," Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova has said.
"Without the right to the last word. Today, a puppet Russian court sentenced Crimean Tatar political prisoners Servet Gaziev, Jemil Gafarov, Erfan Osmanov, Alim Karimov and Seyran Murtaz to 13 years in prison each," Dzhaparova said on Twitter.
She said the invaders arrested the Crimean Tatars in 2019 on politically motivated charges.
"The state of their health is a matter of serious concern. This is a sentence for the Russian degrading authoritarian regime, which considers older people with disabilities to be its enemies," Dzhaparova said.
She called on Ukraine's partners for a decisive response.
Servet Gaziev, Dzhemil Gafarov, Erfan Osmanov, Alim Karimov and Seyran Murtaz were detained by the FSB in March 2019. On March 27, 2019, in the occupied Simferopol, Russian security forces conducted mass searches in the homes of at least 25 Crimean Tatar families. Later, the FSB of Russia announced the detention of 20 people in Crimea, who were accused of participating in the "international terrorist organization Hizb ut-Tahrir.