Two Crimean men released from Russian detention due to severe health conditions have been sent back to prison just months after their temporary freedom, Suspilne Crimea reports.
Since Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, Crimean Tatars and other Muslims have faced systematic repression, including arrests, searches, and harassment. Russian authorities frequently use politically motivated charges to suppress dissent and limit the community’s political and religious activity. Human rights groups say these actions are part of a broader campaign to control and intimidate Muslims on the peninsula.
Cancer patient freed in August, re-arrested in October
Lenur Khalilov, a Crimean Tatar community figure from Alushta, was freed in August 2025 after the Isakogorsky District Court in Arkhangelsk ruled that his health had deteriorated too sharply for him to remain in prison.
He was diagnosed with liver cancer and hepatitis C while serving an 18-year sentence for alleged links to Hizb ut-Tahrir.
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an Islamic organization that operates legally in most countries, but Russia has regularly cited alleged membership as a reason to imprison Crimean Muslims, often without evidence, using it to justify political repression.
Khalilov was known locally for helping families of political prisoners and taking part in informal support groups that formed after 2014.
His wife, Umida Khudoyberdiyeva, said the community gathered around him the moment he came home: “People came from all over Crimea to see him. It was like a wedding - so much joy and worry at the same time.”
During the three months at home, he received urgent treatment for both cancer and hepatitis C. But in mid-October, a Russian court ordered him back into detention. On 7 November, four officers arrived at the family home. “I just entered the yard, and they were already there,” Khudoyberdiyeva said. “My hands were shaking as I packed his things.”
Since then, the family has had no information about his condition or whether he is receiving treatment.
Blind activist sent back to detention after May release
Oleksandr Sizikov, a blind Crimean activist from Bakhchysarai, was released in May 2025 by the Minusinsk City Court because of his health. He lost his sight in a 2009 accident but continued to take part in community work, including helping families of detainees and attending local religious gatherings.
Sizikov had been sentenced to 17 years in prison for alleged ties to Hizb ut-Tahrir, a charge widely criticized by human rights defenders as baseless.
His mother, Olena Sizikova, explained the difficulties of caring for a blind prisoner: “A blind person needs special conditions: nothing should be on his path. At home, I guided him by touch and sound so he could orient himself.”
Despite the court ruling, Sizikov was re-arrested in October by a Russian-controlled court in Bakhchysarai, briefly held in a local detention facility, and then transferred to Simferopol’s pre-trial detention center, awaiting transfer to a Russian colony.
In April, Sizikov spoke publicly about the conditions he faced after his release from a Siberian detention facility, describing long transfers, limited access to medical care and repeated pressure over his religious practices.
His account highlighted how difficult it was to secure basic rights inside the system and how much of his daily survival depended on help from other detainees.
"Neither appeals nor international pressure prevent continued repression"
Victoria Nesterenko, project manager at the human rights center ZMINA, says cases like Khalilov and Sizikov reflect a broader pattern.
“The number of political prisoners with serious health conditions is growing. Re-arresting individuals despite court rulings shows that neither appeals nor international pressure prevent continued repression,” she said.
Both cases underline the precarious situation for Crimean political prisoners, especially those with severe illnesses. Freed temporarily on medical grounds, they face repeated detention with little access to treatment, while families are left in uncertainty and fear for their loved ones’ survival.
A decade of persecution targeting Crimean Muslims
Since the annexation of Crimea, Russian authorities have regularly targeted Crimean Muslims, accusing them of extremism or terrorism without credible evidence. Many have been imprisoned, fined, or forced into exile, while their communities face restrictions on cultural, religious, and political activities.
International observers say this repression echoes historical patterns: Crimean Tatars were deported en masse under Soviet rule in 1944, and their rights have repeatedly been undermined by Russian authorities over decades.
Today, repeated arrests of political prisoners, particularly those with health vulnerabilities, illustrate how Russian authorities continue to use the legal system to silence an entire ethnic group.
