Every day, our compatriots in temporarily occupied Crimea continue to tirelessly resist the Russian occupiers, demonstrating support for Ukraine and trust in the inevitable de-occupation of the peninsula.

In our regular column # resistance_movement, together with the National Resistance Center, we continue to inform you about public sentiment among Crimean residents and about the people who destroy Russian propaganda narratives.

Russia persecutes Crimean residents because of their pro-Ukrainian stance and manifestations of Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar identity. In 2022, Russia adopted amendments to the criminal and administrative codes, which provide for liability for the so-called “discrediting of the armed forces of the Russian Federation” to suppress the resistance and unwillingness of people to accept the occupation. The following recent cases are illustrative:

• A resident of Simferopol posted the song “Good Evening, We Are from Ukraine” on her social media. The occupiers detained the woman and charged her with “discrediting the Russian army.”
• Another resident of Simferopol shared patriotic symbols and expressed support for the actions of Ukraine’s Security and Armed Forces on social media. The occupiers detained the man, forced him to apologize on video, drew up a protocol, and referred the case to the occupation “court.”
• In Feodosiia, a resident criticized the occupiers and the actions of the Russian army in Ukraine on social media. The occupiers detained the man and accused him of “public calls for extremist activities.”
• In occupied Crimea, Russian forces detained the editor-in-chief of the Crimean Tatar children’s magazine Armançıq, Ediie Muslimova. During her detention, she underwent prolonged interrogations about her activities and the work of the magazine. She was released after approximately 36 hours of detention.
• Employees of the so-called “Crimean state traffic inspectorate” have intensified checks on vehicles with “UA” stickers. During inspections, drivers are being forced to remove these stickers from their cars.

Every day, organized resistance movements, which gained strength after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, demonstrate their resistance to the occupiers:

• Activists from the resistance movement ATESH continue to gather intelligence on the occupiers’ military facilities. They identified a military base in Fiolent, housing the 25th Coastal Mobile Missile Battalion equipped with S-300 air defense systems and the 26th Naval Radar Battalion. They also gathered information on defensive structures in Yevpatoriia and its surrounding areas. Additionally, agents provided details on the location of four S-400 “Triumph” systems and associated missile storage facilities near Yevpatoriia.
• Activists from the Yellow Ribbon movement continue their resistance against the occupiers in Crimea by destroying propaganda materials and spreading patriotic symbols in occupied cities, including Sevastopol, Simferopol, and Yalta. Activists from Crimea also extended their congratulations to all Ukrainians on the Day of Dignity and Freedom.

The movement reported distributing approximately 60,000 leaflets, stickers, ribbons, and banknotes with messages in the occupied territories over the past year. They expressed gratitude to artists, public figures, bloggers, athletes, artists, presenters, and all those who joined their flash mob in the unoccupied territories of Ukraine.

• Activists from Crimean Combat Seagulls continue to expose the personal data of collaborators and Russian war criminals in occupied Crimea. They also reported an explosion at the occupiers’ airbase in the Belbek airport.
• The resistance movement Zla Mavka continues to maintain their journals, distribute a weekly bulletin revealing the occupiers’ crimes, and promote patriotic symbols.

We should not forget about political prisoners who, even in inhumane conditions of detention, demonstrate steadfastness and resistance to the occupation regime. As of November 28, the Russian occupation administration has unlawfully detained 218 individuals, including 132 representatives of the Crimean Tatar people.

• The illegally imprisoned Crimean resident Rustem Huhuryk is being denied medical care in a Russian colony in Buryatia. His health has significantly deteriorated; he suffers from severe shortness of breath, heartburn, and toothache, and he has recently lost hearing in one ear. Despite numerous appeals, the colony administration continues to ignore his condition.
• Crimean Tatar citizen journalist Seiran Saliiev, unlawfully sentenced by the occupiers to 16 years in prison, has been held under strict conditions in Penal Colony No. 4 in the Tula region since July. This regime limits the number of visits and parcels he can receive, and he is allowed outside only once a day for an hour and a half.
• Illegally sentenced Crimean Ivan Yatskin, held in a Russian correctional facility in Kemerovo, spent 50 days in a punishment cell. While Yatskin receives minimal medical examinations, his complaints about his health condition are consistently ignored.
• Teimur Abdullaiev, unlawfully convicted in the “Crimean Muslims case,” has lost hearing in one ear following an illness.
• Oleh Fedorov, another defendant in the “Crimean Muslims case,” was unlawfully sentenced by a Russian court to 13 years in a high-security colony and recently transferred from Prison No. 2 in Yelets, Lypetsk region. Oleh reports a significant deterioration in his eyesight and a sharp decrease in weight.
• Nasrulla Seidaliiev, also unlawfully convicted by the occupiers, is enduring harsh conditions in a prison in Minusinsk, Krasnoyarsk Krai. Nasrulla has lost half of his body weight and sometimes eats only once a day. These conditions have led to severe health issues, including high blood pressure, advanced varicose veins, and leg swelling.

The increase in resistance is also evidenced by new unlawful administrative cases in the occupation courts of Crimea under the article on so-called “discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.” As of November 27, 2024, 1,093 cases filed under Article 20.3.3 have been recorded in occupation courts in Crimea and other occupation administrations. In 955 cases, rulings were issued imposing administrative penalties in the form of fines or combining them with other cases, resulting in cumulative unlawful decisions. In 42 cases, the review of materials is ongoing. By gender, 415 (47%) rulings were issued against women, and 539 (57%) against men. The total amount of fines imposed has already reached at least 26.4 million Russian rubles.

We thank everyone for their courage and clear public stance. Crimea is Ukraine, and we are fighting together to return the Crimean Peninsula to Ukrainian control as soon as possible and to bring a sense of security to our citizens from the temporarily occupied territories.

Glory to Ukraine!