On 24 May 2016, a member of the Executive Council of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars was abducted in temporarily occupied Bakhchysarai.

That evening, Ervin Ibrahimov was heading home from work. He was last seen on a street in Bakhchysarai, where unidentified men wearing the uniforms of Russian security forces stopped his vehicle. The moment of the abduction was captured by CCTV cameras. The footage shows men forcibly dragging Ervin Ibrahimov into a minibus. Since then, all contact with him has been lost, and his whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

Prior to the occupation of Crimea, Ervin Ibrahimov was actively engaged in civic work; he was a member of the Bakhchysarai Regional Mejlis and openly supported the territorial integrity of Ukraine. After 2014, he did not cease his activities, instead assisting the families of political prisoners and victims of persecution. Furthermore, Ervin Ibrahimov was among those who openly spoke out about human rights violations in Crimea and supported the Crimean Tatar community under the constant pressure of the Russian occupation administration.

The name of Ervin Ibrahimov has become a symbol of the struggle for truth and justice in Crimea. His family, friends, and the public continue to demand that his fate be established and that those responsible for his abduction be held accountable.

Today, the Russian Federation continues its practice of politically motivated persecution, illegal detentions, and forced disappearances in Crimea. Ukraine and the international community persist in demanding that Ervin Ibrahimov’s fate be established and that the perpetrators be brought to justice.