Remzi Bekirov

Bekirov, a Crimean Solidarity activist and correspondent for Grani.ru, experienced political persecution and pressure beginning on March 27, 2019. On that day, his residence was subjected to a search. The following day, he was detained in Rostov-on-Don, and on the same day of his detention, he was placed into custody on charges related to organizing the activities of a terrorist organisation.

During this, Bekirov reported that he was beaten during his arrest, then taken to a forest where he was beaten again, and afterward transported for six hours in handcuffs with hands behind his back, while being threatened and intimidated. Following these events, he was transferred to a pre-trial detention center in the Rostov region before being moved back to Crimea.

In March 2020, it became known that Bekirov was facing additional charges related to preparing to overthrow the constitutional order of the Russian Federation. On March 10, 2022, he received a 19-year sentence in a strict-regime penal colony.