The Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Alen Simonyan, stated that a "political operation aimed at regime change" is being prepared against Armenia, referring to Russia's actions. He drew a parallel between the situation in Ukraine, where Russia's interests are being advanced militarily, and Armenia, where, he believes, an attempt is being made to seize power.
Convict Rustem Seitmemetov's eyesight has fallen, his blood pressure is constantly jumping and his legs are swollen because of the hot weather. This was reported by the wife of the Crimean Tatar, who visited him with her little daughter in prison No. 1 in Dimitrovgrad, Ulyanovsk region.
The political prisoner conveyed his regards to his compatriots and thanked everyone for their support.
Rustem Seitmemetov was detained in March 2020 in Bakhchisaray. He, like hundreds of other Crimean Tatars, was accused of participating in the Islamic organization Hizb ut-Tahrir, banned in the Russian Federation. There is not a single piece of evidence in the materials of the investigation that the defendant had a weapon with him, planned to commit a terrorist act and called on others to do so. The case file contains audio recordings of discussions of politics and religion in the mosques of Bakhchisaray. For this, the man was sentenced to 13 years in prison.