Crimean Muslim political prisoner transported from Crimea to prison
A blind Muslim, Alexander Sizikov, sentenced to 17 years, was transported from Crimea. This was reported by OVD-Info, citing the prisoner's mother, Elena Sizikova. According to her, the man was taken to Krasnodar, and from there, most likely, he will be delivered to the Vladimir region.
Alexander's mother also said that before the transfer, he was not allowed to familiarize himself with the decision of the military appellate court in any of the formats.
After the man was placed in a pre-trial detention center, his lawyers sought to have him examined and released. However, their attempts were unsuccessful. The man has a Group I disability due to his vision: he was completely blinded as a result of a traffic accident.
Alexander Sizikov was found guilty of having ties to the Islamic political party Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is recognized as terrorist in Russia, but operates legally and freely in many countries around the world, including Ukraine. The defendant had been in pretrial detention and under house arrest since July 2020. In May 2023, the Southern District Military Court sentenced Sizikov to 17 years in a maximum security penal colony. According to human rights activists, Hizb ut-Tahrir members are being persecuted not for preparing a coup d'etat and terrorism, but for criticizing the Russian authorities.
