Crimean Tatar activist disappeared during transfer to penal colony
Crimean Tatar political prisoner Servet Gaziyev, 64, sentenced to 13 years, disappeared during transfer. In early December 2024, Gaziyev told his sister by phone that he would soon be transferred from Vladimir Central to a maximum security penal colony, but his relatives have not been able to contact him for over a month.
 
The sister did not receive a response to her letters to the prison. She was told by phone that her brother had left for a transfer.
 
In November last year, it became known that Servet Gaziyev's health had worsened. The Crimean Tatar said that his entire right arm hurt, and that his coordination was impaired. In addition, he again had problems with his intestines. In prison, Gaziyev did not receive the necessary anesthesia. He was examined, but no diagnosis was made.
 
Servet Gaziyev has been in prison since 2019. The Crimean suffered a microstroke in the pretrial detention center. In 2022, he was sentenced to 13 years in prison in the second Simferopol case of Hizb ut-Tahrir. According to the investigation and the court, he participated in a terrorist organization and was preparing to seize power in the Russian Federation. The charges are based on audio recordings of the defendants discussing religious and political topics. At the same time, no weapons, explosives or ammunition were found on Gaziyev and other defendants in the case.
Последние новости
Former senator Rauf Arashukov, sentenced to life imprisonment, has requested a transfer to his father's prison colony
Society
Former senator Rauf Arashukov, sentenced to life imprisonment, has requested a transfer to his father's prison colony
18 March 2026

Former Federation Council member Rauf Arashukov from the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, serving a life sentence in the Black Dolphin prison colony in Orenburg, expressed a desire to be transferred to a prison colony in Mordovia. The reason for this transfer is the fact that his father, Raul Arashukov, is also serving a life sentence there for stealing gas and organizing two murders.

The defense team for a Crimean Tatar political prisoner suffering from brain cancer is seeking his release
Human rights
The defense team for a Crimean Tatar political prisoner suffering from brain cancer is seeking his release
18 March 2026

The health of political prisoner Tofik Abdulgaziyev, who suffers from brain cancer, tuberculosis, and other serious illnesses, continues to deteriorate. His wife, Aliye Kurtametova, reported that his situation is "extremely critical" and recalled unsuccessful requests for assistance in similar cases.

Four regions of the North Caucasus Federal District have declared holidays to celebrate Eid al-Fitr
Society
Four regions of the North Caucasus Federal District have declared holidays to celebrate Eid al-Fitr
18 March 2026

Eid al-Fitr, one of the key Islamic holidays that concludes Ramadan, will begin on the night of March 19-20. Most republics of the North Caucasus Federal District have declared the holiday non-working.

Azerbaijan reminded Iran of the investigation into the drone attack on Nakhchivan
Politics
Azerbaijan reminded Iran of the investigation into the drone attack on Nakhchivan
18 March 2026

A telephone conversation took place between the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Iran, Jeyhun Bayramov and Seyyed Abbas Araghchi. Bayramov insisted that Tehran fulfill its promise to investigate the drone attacks launched from its territory on the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.