Today, we tell the story of Crimean Tatar activist Izzet Abdullaiev, who was illegally sentenced to 12 years in a maximum security prison.

Life before detention

Izzet Abdullaiev was born on October 22, 1986, in Toytepa, the Tashkent region, Uzbekistan, where his family was deported from Crimea in 1944. 

In 1994, he returned to Crimea with his family, settling in the Pervomaiskyi region in the village of Sverdlovske.

In 2004, he entered the Simferopol Construction Vocational School, where he graduated a year later with a degree in gas and electric welding. After that, he worked in his field of specialization and later got a job in an organization selling auto parts, where he first worked as a loader and was later appointed warehouse manager.

What have the occupiers come up with?

In 2018, Izzet Abdullaiev was abducted right from work to the so-called “center for countering extremism.”

Already on March 27, 2019, during the most massive searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars in the Kamianka and Strohanivka districts of Simferopol, the activist was illegally detained by the Russian occupation administration.

On May 12, 2022, a “court” in Rostov-on-Don passed a verdict sentencing him to 12 years in a maximum security colony with the first five years in prison and one year of restriction of freedom after release.

In addition, the Crimean Tatar was denied an interpreter during the trial.

“We are waiting for the day when they will openly say that we, citizens of Ukraine, Muslim Crimean Tatars, were tried only on political grounds. And those who actually deserve punishment will be punished,” he said in court.

Why was Izzet Abdullaiev actually detained?

Like many other representatives of the Crimean Tatar people in Crimea, he was harassed and persecuted by the occupation administration for his faith, nationality, and views.

In 2016, Izzet began organizing events for the children of Crimean political prisoners and children’s celebrations of Muslim holidays. He was an activist of the Crimean Solidarity public association—he not only delivered food to the pre-trial detention center for political prisoners but also actively participated in court hearings where politically motivated cases were considered. In addition, he was always there for his fellow residents during illegal searches in their homes, supporting them morally and helping them cope with the pressure from the occupying state.

Where is Izzet Abdullaiev now?

On July 2, 2023, Izzet Abdullaiev was taken from the Novocherkassk detention center to a prison in Vladimir. On July 15, he was taken to Prison No. 1 in the city of Dimitrovgrad, Ulyanovsk region, where he is still being held.

The materials were created as part of the #10yearsofResistance information campaign, which is being conducted in cooperation with the Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine and is part of the events dedicated to the Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea.