RFE/RL

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry called on the Russian authorities to release the gravely ill activist Eden Bekirov, who was illegally arrested and held in the Simferopol-based detention facility since December 2018, and Ukrainian activist Oleksandr Kolchenko, who was illegally convicted in Russia.

"Now it is extremely important that attention is paid to the deteriorating health of Eden Bekirov, a disabled Crimean Tatar man, taken into custody by the Russian occupation authorities on completely fabricated charges. We demand that Russia release Eden Bekirov who needs immediate medical attention," press secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Kateryna Zelenko, wrote on Twitter on Thursday, Aug 15.

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"The Russian court rejected the request of Ukrainian political prisoner Oleksandr Kolchenko to be transferred to correctional labor instead of being held at a penal colony. Russia is tightening its repressive grip on those who defend freedom and justice. Freedom to Kolchenko," Zelenko added.