The term of imprisonment of Kremlin’s prisoner Zeytullayev increased to 15 years

The Supreme Court of Russia considered the appeal of Ukrainian citizen Ruslan Zeytullayev and decided to leave him in prison, while increasing the term of imprisonment from 12 to 15 years.

As reported by lawyer Emil Kurbedinov on his Facebook page.

“Ruslan delivered a rather voluminous speech, where he described many important things and events! One of Ruslan’s important statements was about the concept of the term “terrorism”, which has mutated and been distorted by the authorities since its appearance that people who have never blown anything up, never have set anything on fire, never have prepared anything and had never taken anyone hostage are accused of terrorism!”, – Kurbedinov wrote.

At the same time, lawyer Edem Semedlyaev reported on his Facebook page Zeytullayev, who was detained by the occupying Russian authorities in the “Hizb ut-Tahrir” case, announced a third hunger strike.

Zeytullayev demands a meeting with the Ukrainian consul and Commissioner for Human Rights Valeriya Lutkovska. He also asks to admit Russian human rights defenders, representatives of the Consulate General of Ukraine, journalists, who are wishing to see him, to visit him in the SIZO (pre-trial detention centre).

In addition, a motion was filed to return Zeytullayev to Ukraine as a citizen of Ukraine and to stop the persecution of Crimean Tatars on national and religious grounds.

“The judicial board has taken the motion into consideration, but it does not apply to the subject of the trial”, – the judge said in response and rejected the motion.

As reported by the Krym.Realiyi, Zeytullayev drew several posters in response, including poster saying “Repressions of the XXI century” and silently pointed these posters to the camera.

As a reminder, on April 26, 2017, the North Caucasus District Military Court in Russia has sentenced a defendant in the “Hizb ut-Tahrir” case Ruslan Zeytullayev to imprisonment for a term of 12 years.

On 7 September 2016, the North Caucasus District Military Court found Zeytullayev guilty of “participating in terrorist communities” and sentenced him to seven years of imprisonment. he Russian Prosecutor’s Office had appealed this decision to the Supreme Court of Russia and the case was sent to the North Caucasus District Military Court for reconsideration. Investigative authorities insisted that Zeytullayev should not be considered as a participant, but as an organizer of the terrorist community.

The corresponding article of the Criminal Code of Ukraine provides for a sanction up from 15 years to life imprisonment.

Defenders of arrested and convicted Crimean residents in the “Hizb ut-Tahrir” case consider their persecution to be motivated on religious grounds.

Representatives of the International Islamic political organization “Hizb ut-Tahir” called its mission to unite all Muslim countries into an Islamic caliphate. However they reject all kinds of terroristic methods to achieve their goals and believe their organization to be unfairly subjected to persecution in Russia.

Russia’s Supreme Court banned “Hizb ut-Tahir” in 2003 and included it in the list of terrorist organizations.