On Saturday, May 22, Edem Smailov, a defendant in the so-called second Bakhchysarai Hizb ut-Tahrir case, turned 53 years old. He is forced to celebrate his fourth birthday in the dungeons of the FSB, where he and other defendants in the so-called case were illegally placed by the occupying Russian authorities. The staff of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center sincerely congratulates Edem Smailov on his birthday! We wish you good health, patience, unbending will, speedy release and family reunification!
On October 11, 2017, in the city of Bakhchysarai, the occupants carried out mass searches in 6 dwellings of Crimean Tatars – Marlen Asanov, Seyran Saliiev, Timur Ibrahimov, Memet Belyalov, Ernest Ametov, Server Zakiryaev. Everyone was detained. They were charged under Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation “Participation in the activities of an organization which, in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, is recognized as terrorist”.
On May 21, 2018, Russian security forces raided the dwellings of activists of the Crimean Solidarity public association in the occupied Crimea, as a result of which Server Mustafayev and Edem Smailov were detained. They were also accused of their membership in Hizb ut-Tahrir organisation, which is prohibited on the territory of the Russian Federation.
In February 2019, a criminal case was opened against eight individuals involved in the so-called second Bakhchysarai Hizb ut-Tahrir case – Marlen Asanov, Seiran Saliiev, Timur Ibrahimov, Memet Belyalov, Ernest Ametov, Server Zakiryaev, Server Mustafayev and Edem Smailov (“Violent seizure of power or violent retention of power”).
On March 5, it became known that the two defendants in the so-called second Bakhchysarai Hizb ut-Tahrir case – Timur Ibrahimov and Memet Belyalov – had their charge tightened from part two of Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code (“participation in the activities of a terrorist organization”) to the part one (“organization of the activities of a terrorist organization”).
On September 16, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don announced the verdict to the defendants in the second so-called Bakhchysarai Hizb ut-Tahrir case. Marlen Asanov was sentenced to 19 years in a strict regime colony, Memet Belyalov – to 18, Timur Ibrahimov – to 17, Seyran Saliiev – to 16, Server Mustafayev – to 14, Server Zakiryaev and Edem Smailov – to 13. Ernest Ametov was found innocent and released in the courtroom.