Editor of Crimean Tatar children’s magazine Edie Muslimova abducted in temporarily occupied Crimea (updated)
Edie Muslimova, the 61-year-old editor-in-chief of the Crimean Tatar children’s magazine “Armanchyq,” has gone missing in the temporarily occupied Crimea. Both her personal and work phones are currently turned off. She has been out of contact since November 21, 2024, according to the grass-root human rights initiative “Crimean Solidarity”.
Edie MuslimovaHer niece, Elzara Muslimova, reported that the family has filed a police report and started a search and is also preparing a statement to the illegitimate “Prosecutor’s Office” and the “FSB” in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
“Yesterday, Thursday, November 21, 2024, at 11:00 AM, I last spoke with my aunt, Edie Muslimova. We talked, and she said she would finish some household chores and leave Simferopol from Kyiv Street towards Sudak, to the village of Solnechnaya Dolina, to see her mother,” said Elzara Muslimova.
Local human rights defender Lutfiye Zudieva confirmed through her sources that the abduction took place near Muslimova’s parked car outside her home.
“Edie Muslimova was put into a white GAZelle by three unknown men. This happened yesterday, November 21, near the car parked near her house,” Zudieva wrote
The victim’s niece, Elzara Muslimova, said the family has initiated a search and filed reports with both police and the Russian-installed “Prosecutor’s Office” and “FSB” on the temporarily occupied peninsula.
According to Elzara Muslimova, Edie Muslimova’s mother is 91 years old. She needs her daughter’s care and assistance. The elderly woman has a first-degree disability.
“At 6:00 PM, her mother (my grandmother) called me and said that she was still not home. I started calling her, my grandmother couldn’t reach her since 4:00 PM, even at 3:00 PM her nephews called, but she was already out of reach. I started calling – she has two phones – work and personal, – both phones are turned off. There is no connection: neither Telegram, nor WhatsApp, nor Viber,” added the niece.
Edie Muslimova’s car is still parked near her house.
Edie Muslimova has served as the publisher of the Crimean Tatar magazine “Armanchyq” since 2011. She is the daughter of Crimean Tatar activist Refat Muslimov, who successfully returned to Crimea with his family in 1968 despite significant obstacles.
“This magazine is her life’s work. She has dedicated herself to preserving our people’s culture and language. The publication represents her commitment to teaching children their native language,” her relatives stated.
Refat Chubarov, head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar reported that kidnapped Crimean Tatar woman is currently being held in an FSB building.
Her current status is unknown, but based on the experiences of hundreds of similar detentions of other Crimean Tatars, it is likely that, from the moment of her detention until formal charges are brought against her, Edie Muslimova is being subjected to pressure to force her to confess to the fabricated charges against her,” he said.
Update: A public outcry in Crimea led to the woman’s release during the night of the 23rd. FSB held her for about 36 hours. In a recorded video, she stated that FSB officers told her they had detained her because they had “received a signal,” but she provided no further details.
