The United States has called on the Russian Federation to immediately release Crimean Tatar and other Ukrainian prisoners.
"On Human Rights Day, we urge Russia to immediately release Crimean Tatar and other Ukrainian prisoners it has unjustly detained," the U.S. Embassy said on Facebook on December 10.
Read alsoRussian court sentences Crimean Tatar activist Seytosmanov to 17 years in prison
On this occasion, American diplomats posted a thematic video on Russia's violation of human rights in occupied Crimea.
Diplomats drew attention to the fact that, in particular, human rights defender, main coordinator of the Crimean Solidarity movement Server Mustafayev has been in pretrial detention since May 2018. He is facing up to 20 years in prison on terrorism charges. Seyran Saliyev, a human rights defender, activist with the Crimean Solidarity movement, has been in pretrial detention since October 2017, facing up to 20 years in prison on terrorism charges. Emir-Huseyn Kuku, a human rights defender, a member of the Human Rights Contact Group, has been in pretrial detention since February 2016, facing up to 20 years in prison on terrorism charges.
Human rights defender, activist of the Crimean Solidarity movement Marlen Asanov has been in custody since October 2017; he is facing up to life in prison on terrorism charges. Blogger of the Crimean Solidarity movement Remzi Bekirov has been in pretrial detention since March 2019. He is facing up to life in prison on terrorism charges. Crimean Solidarity blogger Nariman Mededeminov, who has been in custody since March 2018, is facing imprisonment for up to seven years in prison on charges of terrorism.
Ruslan Zeytullayev has the longest sentence of those Crimean Tatars already convicted – 15 years on terrorism charges. He has been behind bars since January 2015.
"Russia should release all unjustly imprisoned Ukrainians immediately," the video address calls.
