Main news of the week:

▶ On the night of July 18, a Russian coast guard base on Donuzlav Lake in Crimea was damaged. It was a combined attack by sea and air drones, which resulted in the destruction of the headquarters with a command center, an ammunition and equipment depot, and an electrical substation. 

▶ The occupiers have begun dismantling the Holy Cross Exaltation Church of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Yevpatoriia. Today, the dome and the upper part of the church have been dismantled. Metropolitan Klyment emphasized that the occupiers were destroying the last Ukrainian church in Crimea. 

▶ The occupational “court” canceled the fine imposed on Lutfiie Zudiieva, a Crimean human rights activist and journalist, for posts from three years ago. The “jury” decided that the “police” officers had no right to draw up a report on the offense instead of the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor). 

▶ Since the beginning of the summer, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have conducted at least 11 effective strikes on the facilities of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. These included damage to the Russian tugboat Project 498 Saturn or Proteus on Lake Panske, damage to three S-300 divisions, four S-400 systems, and three radar systems, a strike on a military facility near the village of Michurinivka, a fire at the training grounds in Vitino and near Cape Chauda, and damage to an ammunition depot in the Balaklava district. 

Crime dynamics under the occupation:

▶ As of July 22, the occupiers have illegally imprisoned 217 people, including 132 Crimean Tatars. Of the total number, 39 are arrested (including 28 Crimean Tatars), 149 are imprisoned (including 97 Crimean Tatars), and 28 are without status (including 6 Crimean Tatars).

▶ As of mid-July, 847 cases of materials drawn up under the article on the so-called “discrediting the Russian army” were submitted to “courts” in temporarily occupied Crimea. In June, the occupiers unlawfully prosecuted at least 22 people for pro-Ukrainian statements and activities. 

▶ Political prisoner Riza Omerov, who was illegally sentenced to 13 years in prison by the occupiers, was taken to the colony in the city of Tsyvilsk, Chuvash Republic of Russia. The information was reported by his wife Sevilia Omerova.

▶ The occupation administration has sent to the “court” a case against two agents of the Main Intelligence Directorate who allegedly tried to eliminate the author of the Crimean Smerch propaganda channel “for a reward of 1 million rubles”. It is important to emphasize that Ukrainian intelligence does not carry out military operations for a reward and certainly does not cooperate with Russian special services.

▶ A 19-year-old school graduate was detained in Sevastopol for so-called “discrediting the Russian army.” The occupation administration accuses the young man of writing offensive comments on social media against Russian military personnel and members of the so-called “special military operation.” He faces a fine of 30 to 50 thousand rubles.

▶ The occupation “court” in Simferopol did not satisfy the appeal of the representatives of the Qırım newspaper. It confirmed the fine of 300 thousand rubles for the so-called “discrediting the Russian army.” Six administrative protocols were drawn up: two against the publication, two against the founder and director of the newspaper, Seiran Ibrahimov, and two against the editor-in-chief, Bekir Mamutov. In the publication for which the fine was imposed, the editors called on Crimean residents not to participate in the war against Ukraine. 

Militarization of the Crimean Peninsula 

▶ The occupiers in Crimea combine the holiday season with military training. They are strengthening the peninsula’s airborne defense by building fortifications and trenches. 

▶ The occupiers continued to militarize youth and spread lies that Crimean youth were “distinguished by their patriotic position and active assistance to the participants of the war.” Since the beginning of the occupation of Crimea, the Russian regime has been actively militarizing youth and systematically destroying the education system in Crimea. 

▶ The military guerrilla movement ATESH reports that a secret Russian military training center disguised as a school for divers has been discovered in occupied Sevastopol. The military center is used to train personnel, including unusual training exercises such as target practice in the water. In addition, training with various small arms was conducted in Kozacha Bay using warning systems and smoke screens.

Propaganda of the occupation administrations and incitement to hostility

▶ The occupiers claimed that on July 18, they intercepted 33 Ukrainian drones over the territory of Crimea and destroyed ten crewless boats in the Black Sea. The Defense Forces of Ukraine managed to hit a Russian coast guard base on Donuzlav Lake in Crimea. Ukrainian strikes in Crimea have become more effective thanks to the use of high-tech weapons provided by the West. The military operations conducted by the Armed Forces of Ukraine forced Russia to move some of its military aircraft out of Crimea to protect critical military infrastructure.

▶ In response to Ukraine’s plans to hold the second Global Peace Summit, the occupiers said that the collective West is trying to “transfer the confrontation with Russia to the diplomatic plane, but it will be unsuccessful.” The Russian propagandists claimed that Ukraine is trying to buy time, waiting for sanctions against Russia to take effect and for the Ukrainian army to recover.

 The situation in the Black Sea basin

▶ Bulker ZAFAR delivered 35,700 tons of wheat from occupied Sevastopol to the Houthi-controlled Salif Port under UN authorization, which drew criticism from the international community. The voyage was the first time a Russian ship had been allowed to transport grain from occupied Crimea to a port in Yemen. Security analysts called it a disturbing development that should raise the alarm about the UN-led verification mechanism.

▶ The Russian bulk carrier Matros Koshka, known for smuggling Ukrainian grain, has reappeared in the Black Sea. The vessel, which has repeatedly been featured in reports of grain theft from Ukraine’s occupied territories, is currently heading to the Kavkaz Port. Experts consider that it may stop in Sevastopol or Feodosiia, from where stolen Ukrainian products were previously transported to other Russian-controlled ports.

Regional situation 

▶ Large-scale fires broke out in Crimea. In the Urozhaine city of the Simferopol district, rescuers extinguished an eight-hour-long fire. In Koktebel, the fire covered 40 hectares of forest and the territory of the Karadag Nature Reserve. Aviation and Mi-8 helicopters were used to extinguish the fire, and only then was it localized. Five fires broke out in Crimea that day, and more than 500 specialists were involved in their elimination.

▶ The abnormal heat wave, which harms the Crimean power system, has led to a significant increase in complaints from citizens about the work of the so-called Krymenergo hotlines. People report rudeness, lack of feedback, and inability to get on the phone. After the power supply from mainland Ukraine was cut off, Russia demonstrated its inability to provide a full-fledged power supply to the occupied peninsula. Due to the heat wave and overloaded power grids, the cities of Crimea are subject to power restrictions: the tourist season is marked by regular blackouts. 

Civil resistance

▶ On social media, he supported the Mejlis, supported Ukraine, and condemned the occupation of Crimea. For this, occupation forces broke into the man’s home, detained him, and forced him to apologize on camera. The persecution of ethnic communities whose national and religious affiliation is different from Russian once again demonstrates religious intolerance and chauvinism.

▶ A resident of Crimea allegedly contacted the Ukrainian military and reported his willingness to participate in hostilities against the Russian army. The occupiers detained the man, and the materials were sent to the occupation “court.” Another Crimean resident passed information to the relevant Ukrainian agencies about the location of the occupiers’ units in Crimea and Sevastopol. The occupiers detained the man and initiated a criminal case against him.

▶ Activists of the ATESH resistance movement have identified the location of the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate and the occupiers’ training center in Sevastopol. The activists distributed their leaflets in the city and continued to monitor the construction of fortifications in Yevpatoriia.

▶ Activists of the Yellow Ribbon movement continue to resist the occupiers in Crimea, destroying copies of propaganda materials and distributing patriotic symbols in the occupied cities on the peninsula, particularly in Yalta, Simferopol, Sevastopol, Alushta, Yevpatoriia, and Koktebel. The latest campaign to distribute symbols was dedicated to the Day of Ukrainian Statehood.

▶ Activists of the Crimean Combat Seagulls continue to expose the personal data of collaborators and Russian war criminals in occupied Crimea.

▶ The Zla Mavka resistance movement continues to publish its diaries, distribute a weekly newspaper revealing the occupiers’ crimes.

The Mission continues to receive inquiries from Ukrainian citizens who want to leave Crimea because they cannot tolerate the occupation and total propaganda. We remind you of our instructions on how to leave temporarily occupied Crimea: https://cutt.ly/FwtiajlS

We thank the aware Ukrainian citizens in occupied Crimea for their prompt reports on the situation on the Crimean Peninsula, in particular on the socio-economic situation, the positions of Russian troops, the resistance movements to the occupation, etc. For more information, please send an e-mail to the press service of the Mission: [email protected]

Glory to Ukraine!