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.

We continue to inform you about public sentiment among Crimean residents and about the people who destroy the narratives of Russian propaganda in our regular column #resistance_movement, prepared in cooperation with the National Resistance Center.

Russia continues to persecute Crimean residents for their pro-Ukrainian stance and manifestations of Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar identity. To suppress people’s resistance and unwillingness to put up with the occupation, in 2022, Russia adopted amendments to the criminal and administrative codes that provide for liability for the so-called “discrediting the armed forces of the Russian Federation.” The following recent cases are illustrative:

• A resident of Armyansk published patriotic posts on social media and expressed support for the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The occupiers detained the man, forced him to apologize on video, and the occupation “court” imposed a fine of 30 thousand rubles (two minimum wages).
• A resident of Simferopol posted Ukrainian songs on social media and expressed support for the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The woman was detained by the occupiers, forced to apologize in a video, and the case file was transferred to an illegal “court.”
• In occupied Feodosiia, the occupiers detained a man for having a tattoo in the form of a Ukrainian trident. The man was forced to apologize on video, and the occupiers drew up an administrative report and sent the materials to an illegal “court.”
• In the occupied Simferopol, the occupiers detained lawyer Rustem Kiamiliev, who continues to defend and consult residents of the peninsula who are at risk. Two reports of administrative offenses were drawn up against him for reposting pro-Ukrainian posts as well as criticizing Russia’s aggressive actions on social media. The occupation “court” fined the lawyer 50 thousand rubles and arrested him for 10 days.
• In the temporarily occupied Dzhankoi, the occupiers detained and beat blind Ihor Nikitenko for criticizing the actions of the occupation administration and his YouTube video with words about “‘cotton audience’ that talks about progress.” The occupation “court” fined the man 10 thousand rubles.

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 of the ATESH resistance movement continue to reconnoiter the occupiers’ military facilities, including the air defense system in Sevastopol and the restored military town in Novoozerne. The activists record the strengthening of the occupiers’ control over the railroad tracks in an attempt to combat potential saboteurs and report on the training of African and Cuban mercenaries at the Kozachyi training ground in Sevastopol. They also record the construction of new defensive structures in Sevastopol, designed to protect the bays and preserve the ships serving the Russian Black Sea Fleet, which may indicate the occupiers’ desire to return their warships to the city. Activists of the movement also report on the occupiers’ plans to create a BARS-Crimea brigade. Due to the lack of volunteers, representatives of the occupation administrations have already been ordered to formally join BARS to promote it.
• 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 of the peninsula, including Yalta, Simferopol, Sevastopol, Bakhchysarai, Yevpatoriia, Gaspra and Foros.
• Activists of the Crimean Combat Seagulls continue to expose the personal data of collaborators and Russian war criminals in the occupied Crimea. They also report on the death of Valerii Trankovskyi, Chief of Staff of the 41st Brigade of Missile Ships of the Black Sea Fleet, in a car bombing in Sevastopol and the destruction of a bridge over the railway line near the village of Maslovo, Dzhankoi district.
• The  Zla  Mavka resistance movement continues to keep its diaries and distribute a weekly newspaper revealing the crimes of the occupiers and patriotic symbols. The activists boasted of mass action in Simferopol, during which hundreds of stickers with messages were distributed: “Crimea is Ukraine,” ‘ Let go of the occupiers,” and ‘Glory to the Armed Forces!’. Also, on the day of Kherson’s liberation, activists in many temporarily occupied cities, including Simferopol and Sevastopol, left pumpkins on the streets, symbolically saying “no” to the occupiers in Ukrainian cities.

We should not forget about political prisoners who, even in inhumane conditions of detention, demonstrate steadfastness and resistance to the occupation. As of the beginning of November, the Russian occupation administration illegally detained 218 people, 132 of whom were representatives of the Crimean Tatar people.

• The convicted Crimean Murat Kadyrov is being held in harsh conditions in the city of Koriazhma, Arkhangelsk region of the Russian Federation, where he faces numerous violations of his rights and pressure from the administration. The political prisoner, who suffers from osteochondrosis, is forced to work, in addition, all his medications are taken away from him, and he is constantly taken to a psychologist and for interrogations.
• Crimean Aziz Akhtemov, sentenced to 13 years in prison by the occupiers, is currently undergoing a two-week quarantine in a colony in the city of Rubtsovsk, Altai region of Russia. Before being transferred to Rubtsovsk, Akhtemov went through several stages of transfer from different detention centers: after being imprisoned in Yeniseisk, he was transferred to Detention Center No. 1 in Krasnoyarsk region and then to detention centers in Novosibirsk and Barnaul.
• The Supreme Court of Russia upheld the verdict of the court of the previous instance against the defendants in the “case of the Crimean Muslims” Servet Haziiev, Alim Karimov, Seiran Murtazi, and Erfan Osmanov, who were illegally sentenced to 13 years in prison. Only Dzhemil Hafarov’s sentence in this case was overturned due to his death in prison. The 61-year-old political prisoner died on February 10, 2023, from cardiovascular failure due to the negligence of doctors and prison authorities.

New illegal administrative proceedings in the occupation courts of Crimea under the article on the so-called “discrediting the Russian Armed Forces” also testify to the growing resistance. As of November 8, 2024, 1047 cases of materials drawn up under Article 20.3.3 were recorded in the occupation courts in Crimea and other occupation bodies. In 928 cases, a decision was made to impose an administrative penalty in the form of a fine or to join the case to another case and make a cumulative illegal decision. In 31 cases, the materials are still being considered. Disaggregated by gender, 401 (43%) decisions were issued against women, and 525 (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!