The Final Statement
‘Once again, we have become pawns in geopolitics, and once again we see that they want Crimea without the Crimean Tatars.’
Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim.
‘My poor father! They’ve thrown you into a jail like a criminal, alongside thieves and gangsters!’
‘Now, now, my son,’ his father interrupted gently. ‘There are plenty of honest people in prison!’
‘What are they in there for? What wrong have they done?’
‘Nothing at all, my son. That’s precisely why they were locked up. Decent people are not to Prince Lemon’s liking.’
‘So being sent to prison is a great honour?’ he asked.
‘It would seem so. Prisons are built for those who steal and kill, but under Prince Lemon everything is the other way around: thieves and murderers live in his palace, while honest citizens languish in prison.’
As a child, I read Cipollino many times and watched the animated film, but I could never have imagined that I would become the prototype for Cipollino’s father, or that this fairy tale would become reality. Gianni Rodari’s story is astonishingly relevant to Russia today.
Those in power, hiding behind anti-terrorism and anti-extremism legislation, are stamping out every form of dissent. Our politically motivated case is a striking example, as are the cases of hundreds of other Crimean Tatars and Crimean Muslims who have already been sentenced or are being held in pre-trial detention awaiting their verdicts.
But Crimea is not the only place in the crosshairs of the security services. In my cell, I shared a space with Kemal Tambiev, an entrepreneur and programmer from Karachay-Cherkessia. This cultured man, a graduate of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, was named his republic’s Entrepreneur of the Year. Kemal was also involved in charity work, heading an Islamic charitable foundation. Today, he and his co-defendant, Abdulmumin Gadzhiyev, a journalist well known in the Caucasus, are standing trial on so-called terrorism financing charges. There are hundreds, even thousands, of people like Kemal across Russia. Almost half the detainees in the pre-trial detention centre where I am held are charged under extremism and terrorism laws. Of all the people I spoke to over the course of a year, I encountered only two or three who were being tried for actual deeds, specifically for participating in the fighting in Chechnya in the 1990s, although even those actions can be interpreted in different ways. The rest are so-called paper terrorists and extremists. They have been caught in the grinding machinery of Russia’s punitive system simply for practising their religion and engaging in active public life.
‘Imagine this: our verdict lists “reading the Bible” as evidence of guilt. Isn’t that absurd?’ These are the words of a detainee named Artur, who was convicted of involvement in an extremist organisation. Planted weapons and explosives, books, confessions extracted under electric shocks, secretly recorded conversations about religion and politics–these are the materials used to fabricate criminal cases in Russia today.
And do you know which books are currently among the most widely read? What is preoccupying Russian society today? Among the five most widely read books are Fahrenheit 451, in which the authorities destroy books, and George Orwell’s famous dystopian novel 1984, whose central theme is the persecution of so-called thought criminals–people who dare to think differently from what Big Brother and the Ministry of Truth tell them to think. I never imagined any of this could become reality!
According to the country’s leadership, there are no political prisoners in Russia. Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that no one is convicted for political reasons or for their political views, only for breaking the law. So what are we, and people like us? What ‘terrorist acts’ have we committed to deserve such lengthy prison sentences?
Stalin’s repressions were once also regarded as entirely lawful actions by law enforcement agencies, but they were later judged very differently. The NKVD invented, concocted, and fabricated cases involving non-existent anti-Soviet and conspiratorial organisations. Pavel Chistov, head of the Chelyabinsk regional NKVD directorate, articulated the objective with striking precision. His deputy, Fyodor Lapshin, recalled an incident during an investigation:
‘Once, during a frank conversation about the case involving a “broad organisation of churchmen and clergy”, I told Chistov directly that I did not believe this organisation existed and asked him why it was necessary. Chistov replied that we had to portray the anti-Soviet element in the darkest possible terms in order to justify the mass arrests we were carrying out before history.’
Today, the heirs of the NKVD work not only for history, but also for promotions, prestigious positions, and the enormous budgets allocated to fighting mythical extremists and terrorists. To a large extent, the persecution of dissenters stems from Russia’s lack of an ideology. The authorities do not know what to offer their citizens or how to unite the country. So they are forced to look for enemies everywhere. Muslims, who have a clear understanding of how to live their lives, are particularly convenient targets.
Kirill Martynov, a journalist with Novaya Gazeta, reflecting on the state of modern Russia, writes:
‘…under the current conditions, only those who are not afraid of going to prison can remain free. Most people, myself included, have good reason to be afraid…’
Later in the same article, ‘Russia Has Been Sentenced’, he continues:
‘…if you want to preserve yourself, TOTAL SUBMISSION TO THE AUTHORITIES is required of you. Demonstrative loyalty does not guarantee safety, of course, but at least it moves you towards the bottom of the repression list. Once they have dealt with the disloyal, they will come for you too, but that will only happen tomorrow. Russia is being terrorised into silence and taught to live by the old “camp code”: when your neighbour is being destroyed, turn away, because you have something to lose.’
This is the reality in which my long-suffering people have found themselves. Attacks on and persecution of Crimean Tatar Muslims and other Crimean residents who are citizens of Ukraine began immediately after the events of spring 2014. This aggression has taken the form of murders, including that of Reshat Ametov; numerous abductions, including that of Ervin Ibragimov; torture, including that of Renat Paralamov; and dozens of criminal and administrative cases and fines targeting journalists, human rights defenders, lawyers, and everyone engaged in lawful, non-violent activism. It has also taken the form of a policy of de facto deportation and entry bans imposed on hundreds of Crimean Tatars and others whose views on the events of 2014 and Crimea’s status differed in some way from those of Russian officials. Public organisations and independent media have been banned, and so on. The international community has objectively recognised these actions as politically motivated pressure and persecution on ethnic and religious grounds, and has recognised us as political prisoners and prisoners of conscience–although the Russian Federation and its paid propagandists refuse to acknowledge this.
Once again, we have become pawns in geopolitics, and once again we see that they want Crimea without the Crimean Tatars! Yet the tragic history of my people did not begin in 2014, or even in 1944. It began way back in 1783, when Catherine II annexed Crimea in violation of all treaties and promises. Much could be said about what has happened to Crimean Muslims since then and what continues to happen to this day. I will cite just three statements by senior officials that clearly illustrate Russia’s attitude towards the Crimean Tatars across three different eras.
The first. On 22 May 1856, Minister of State Property Pavel Kiselyov wrote in a confidential letter to the administrator of the Taurida Chamber of State Property that the Tsar ‘deigned to state that there is no reason whatsoever to place any obstacle in the way of the secret or even open emigration of Crimean Tatars to Turkey; on the contrary, the voluntary emigration taking place under the present circumstances should be regarded as highly beneficial for freeing the region of this harmful population’.
The second quotation comes from Council of Ministers Resolution No. 4367-172ss, dated 24 November 1948, whose title was unequivocal: ‘On Deportees’. Stalin decreed:
‘It shall be established that the resettlement of Chechens, Karachays, Ingush, Balkars, Kalmyks, Germans, Crimean Tatars and others to remote regions of the Soviet Union is permanent, with no right to return to their former places of residence.’
From then on, anyone who escaped from their place of settlement was to be sentenced to 20 years of hard labour. Stalin’s decree left the deported people with no hope of ever returning to their homeland. He thought his decisions would last forever, but he himself soon passed into oblivion, and the world turned upside down once again–this time in favour of the persecuted.
The third quotation comes from immediately after our mass arrests in March 2019. The so-called head of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, stated live on federal television:
‘Everyone who disagrees with the Russian authorities and Russia’s policies in Crimea will go to prison. If you don’t like it, the road to Ukraine is open!’
We, the Crimean Tatar people, have accumulated a tragic experience over the past 250 years, during which we have repeatedly been oppressed, exterminated, deported, and subjected to attempts at assimilation or expulsion. After countless empty promises, we have come to the point where we trust and believe no one. We rely only on Allah and ourselves. As a result, over the past eight years, we have had to solve our problems ourselves. The whole world claims to help us, but in practice, we are left to save ourselves. Raids have not stopped; arrests and disappearances continue; lengthy prison sentences, the suffering of political prisoners’ families, the destruction of the Crimean Tatar language, the Russian Federation’s wholesale imposition of its own interpretation of Islam, and the destruction of our traditions and rituals all continue. That is why, as a people, we do not believe promises, whoever makes them, unless words are backed up by deeds grounded in truth.
It was the struggle for our right to preserve our identity and not to be slaves in our own homeland that brought me and 24 of my friends here–to the defendants’ bench. The fact is that the Russian Federation is deeply afraid of active people who are not under the authorities’ control, even when they do not break the law. We did not merely speak: we also took action and stood on the front lines of defending our people–and we paid for it with our freedom. Our large group of 25 represents the entire people. There are both young and old among us. We are defendants in the case of the so-called Second Simferopol Hizb ut-Tahrir group, also known as the ‘Case of the Twenty-Five’. We are community figures and activists who care about what is happening in Crimea.
Among us are citizen journalists, human rights defenders, volunteers, and people who organised deliveries of food and other necessities to political prisoners in pre-trial detention. Our professions included construction workers, entrepreneurs, journalists, programmers, and people from many other fields. We repeatedly organised Islamic celebrations for children, helped improve our towns and villages, and took part in public discussions about the future of our people. I would particularly like to note that most of the defendants were activists with Crimean Solidarity, a civic initiative established to defend Crimean residents persecuted for political reasons. This grassroots initiative focused on exposing the alleged terrorist and provocative activities of the FSB, the Centre for Countering Extremism, and the Russian authorities more broadly in Crimea, particularly against Crimean Tatar Muslims and all forms of dissent. Its activities included attending court hearings and visiting sites of unlawful raids; holding prayer gatherings, an integral part of the non-violent struggle for the rights and interests of the Crimean Tatar people; visiting and assisting the families of people who had been oppressed and indiscriminately accused of terrorism and extremism, charges that have become a paradoxical feature of Crimean society; organising deliveries of food and other necessities to detainees; providing legal assistance; and much more. It was precisely this lawful activism, together with our Islamic convictions, that was the real reason for our arrest.
We, the political prisoners from the so-called Second Simferopol Hizb ut-Tahrir group, consider the Crimean Tatar people’s respect, empathy, and love for us to be the strongest evidence of our innocence of the acts of which we are accused. This love is expressed through numerous rallies of support outside court buildings, hundreds of letters from our compatriots and others, concern for our families and children, and much more. The tragic history of the Crimean Tatars has instilled in Crimean Tatar Muslims a deep sense of empathy, care, and responsibility for others. It has also shaped their political awareness and drive. Every year, more and more concerned people join our struggle against injustice, and this is a source of great joy.
I would like to thank my fellow journalists from Crimean Solidarity and the online publication Grani.Ru, the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, the international organisation Reporters Without Borders, and everyone who has covered our trials and organised various campaigns in support of Crimean political prisoners.
The Consulate General of Ukraine in Rostov-on-Don, headed by Taras Malyshevskyi, has supported us in every possible way, both materially and morally. I shake your hand and say, ‘Щиро дякую за допомогу!’ [Thank you sincerely for your help!] Special thanks to Lev Ponomaryov, Tetyana Pechonchyk, Emine Dzhappar, Tamila Tasheva, Alim Aliyev, and everyone actively fighting for our interests.
The Memorial Human Rights Centre, which rightly recognised us and many others persecuted for their ideas and beliefs as political prisoners, was unlawfully dissolved. The work you did to cover our cases and support us, the Kremlin’s prisoners in Crimea, means a great deal to us. Thank you for your courage, commitment, and professionalism!
I extend my gratitude to all human rights organisations; Russian and Ukrainian civil society; the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People; Ukrainian and international politicians and prominent public figures who agreed to serve as our public mentors; our courageous lawyers; all compassionate people who support us, attend our hearings, bring us food and other necessities in pre-trial detention, help our families, and recite du’a (supplications) for us. Thank you all! Çoq sağ olunız! JazakAllahu khayran!
Finally, I would like to address those whose interests I represent.
O my long-suffering, unconquered, freedom-loving people! Do not give up! Continue the peaceful struggle against injustice that we have been waging. Preserve your Islamic identity–the foundation upon which our people were formed. Study the values handed down to us by our ancestors over the centuries, the values that prevented us from being assimilated and helped us survive difficult times. Do not fear tyrants and their servants. Our people have outlived many of them and endured.
The Almighty Allah said:
‘The people have gathered against you, so fear them.’ But this only increased their faith, and they said, ‘Allah is sufficient for us, and He is the best Protector and Guardian!’ So they returned with grace and bounty from Allah, untouched by evil, and followed what pleases Allah. Allah is the possessor of great bounty. It is only Satan who frightens you with his allies. Do not fear them; fear Me, if you are believers. (Surah Al Imran 3:173–175)
O descendants of heroes, stand with those who defend your interests, fight injustice, and call for unity! Remember that if Allah supports you, no one can overcome you. But if He withdraws His support, who can help you in His place? Put your trust in Allah! Seek His help and protection. We, prisoners for our faith, are your strength. We will continue to fight for your interests and recite du’a for you, for your unity, and for your well-being. We believe, and you must believe too. We will not surrender, and neither must you. Until we meet again in freedom!
And finally, I will recite the words of the Almighty:
‘Say: “Truth has come, and falsehood has vanished. Indeed, falsehood is bound to perish.”’ (Quran 17:81)
I now turn to the second part of my final statement. Here, I have prepared several points that I consider important.
First. The Russian Federation’s anti-extremism and anti-terrorism legislation, and in particular the Supreme Court’s 2003 decision designating several organisations as terrorist, is one of Russia’s principal tools for fighting Islam and Muslims. The 2003 decision was adopted in gross violation of the law: the defendants were not present at the hearing, the decision was not published in official media, and the version eventually posted on the website of the National Anti-Terrorism Committee appeared only after the deadline for appealing had expired. Most importantly, no evidence of terrorism, violence, or prohibited materials was presented against Hizb ut-Tahrir, the Muslim Brotherhood, or several other peaceful Islamic organisations.
It is also unclear why organisations such as Tablighi Jamaat were designated extremist when they did nothing beyond charitable work and inviting people to Islam, while rejecting violence, separatism, and extremism. The consequences of these decisions have been hundreds, if not thousands, of criminal cases across Russia against peaceful Muslims, thousands of administrative cases for extremism over something as minor as a like or comment on social media, and much more. The Supreme Court’s 2003 decision plunged investigators, prosecutors, and courts into a state of legal lawlessness, turning them into gendarmerie-like structures that destroy peaceful Muslim civilians.
Second. The arrests and torture of Muslims. The use of anti-terrorism legislation–which in practice terrorises people–has led to thousands of criminal cases. The underlying purpose of these cases is to suppress dissent. The evidence presented is not weapons or explosives, but Islamic books and audio recordings of conversations about religion and politics. Most of the cases I mentioned earlier concern Hizb ut-Tahrir.
During my work as a journalist, and while held at Pre-Trial Detention Centre No. 1 in Rostov-on-Don, I learned about other methods used to arrest peaceful Muslims. Let me say from the outset that the FSB becomes more resourceful with every passing year. You will see what I mean below.
Since most Muslims in Russia live in the south of the country, particularly in the Caucasus, that is where the security services focus much of their attention. The first group of people persecuted consists of those who took part in the fighting in Chechnya. They have either been killed, abducted and made to disappear, or imprisoned for long sentences. In Rostov Pre-Trial Detention Centre No. 1, I met a man from Dagestan named Shamil, who had served 18 years in prison in Arkhangelsk. Considering that most Chechens took up arms to defend their land, you can imagine the scale of repression after the war ended.
I also met Chechens whom the Russian Federation once promised an amnesty. Unfortunately, Russia rarely honours its agreements. Today, these men–Arslanbek and Salanbek–are defendants in criminal cases relating to events that took place long ago, despite the promised amnesty. But even more outrageous than this breach of promises are the cases involving the so-called Nogai Jamaat. During the Second Chechen War, Nogais fought alongside the Chechens. They are being persecuted for this. The arrests of people who actually took part in the fighting might be understandable, or at least explainable. But a Nogai man named Ruslanbek is in my cell today, and he did not take part in that war! He, along with hundreds of other Nogais who also did not fight, is accused of killing hundreds of Russian servicemen in 1999. The main evidence consists of anonymous witnesses who ‘identify’ the defendants 20 years after the events!
‘I was lucky. They only beat me; they didn’t torture me with electric shocks.’ These are the words of Kamil, a Kumyk who was imprisoned on so-called terrorism financing charges, although in reality he had given financial assistance to an acquaintance who needed money for an operation. Ninety-nine per cent of the people from the Caucasus held today in Rostov Central Prison have been subjected to torture, particularly electric shocks!
In Chechnya and Kabardino-Balkaria, uniformed sadists go even further, frequently inflicting torture involving sexual violence, including rape with a stick or a bottle. Increasingly, people held at Rostov Pre-Trial Detention Centre No. 1 are being prosecuted in so-called cases involving pledges of allegiance (bay’ah) to the Islamic State. What is surprising is not that Muslims who are ignorant of their own religion made such pledges without fully understanding what the pledge meant or to whom it was being made. What is surprising is that these cases, too, are fabricated by FSB officers.
By monitoring people online, particularly Muslims interested in Islam, FSB agents posing as knowledgeable Muslims led them into making pledges of allegiance. Not one of these so-called recruiters has been uncovered by investigators. And why would they be? The FSB’s cardinal rule is to ensure that an investigation never leads back to the FSB itself. Meanwhile, Muslims, including minors, receive lengthy prison sentences for their own naivety.
Other FSB agents–or rather, female agents–operate in a similar way. I know of at least three cases in which Muslims ended up in pre-trial detention ‘because of women’. The scheme works like this: a Muslim man joins a dating website, where an FSB agent is already waiting for him and steers the conversation in the desired direction. Once the necessary phrases have been recorded, a new criminal case is built under Article 205. As the French saying goes, cherchez la femme. Sometimes an FSB agent initiates contact herself, carrying out her professional duties.
Today, hundreds or thousands of Muslims with an active role in society are imprisoned in Russia: mosque imams, journalists, scholars, website moderators and bloggers, human rights defenders, public figures, successful businesspeople, and people involved in charitable work.
Let me list some examples I know of:
- Mahmut Velitov, the imam-khatib of a Moscow mosque, is serving a sentence for reciting du’a (supplications) for a murdered Muslim.
- Aslanbek Izhaev, a book publisher, is being held in a Moscow detention centre for publishing Islamic books.
- Kemal Tambiev, a businessman from Karachay, is accused of terrorism because he cared about others and headed a charitable foundation.
- Abdulmumin Gadzhiyev, a man from Dagestan, is imprisoned for his journalistic work.
- Vadim Bektemirov, who holds a master’s degree in Sharia studies, was sentenced to 11 and a half years for his educational work.
- Emir-Usein Kuku and Server Mustafayev were engaged in human rights work.
This list could go on for a very long time. The point remains the same: Russia has no need for active Muslims who contribute to society–indeed, it considers them dangerous!
The number of cases being heard today by the Southern District Military Court is also staggering. We know that our first trials began in the old courthouse on Nagibina Street. The building had just four courtrooms, and that was the extent of its capacity. Today, the number of criminal cases under Article 205.5 has gone through the roof. These are not my words, but those of the guards who escort us. This shows that half the people who end up in Pre-Trial Detention Centre No. 1 are Muslims charged with terrorism under Article 205.5.
The third manifestation of Islamophobia is what are known as ‘add-on charges’ and ‘case-building’. Even if someone has already been sent to a penal colony, that does not mean they can simply serve their sentence in peace. A striking example is our own case, as well as the cases of detainees who have arrived to join us, particularly those connected with the so-called Yashkul criminal case and the penal colony in Tyube.
Muslims serving sentences for various offences in these facilities were praying, reading books, and talking to one another. At some point, the FSB noticed that they were becoming united and decided to build criminal cases against them. As a result, around 100 people, if I am not mistaken, became defendants in the Yashkul case. This is a penal colony in Kalmykia. Hearings in these cases are now taking place in this very court. The defendants are accused of recruitment and participation in banned organisations. The key witnesses are anonymous witnesses who were forced to testify.
These add-on charges are a clear example of what we detainees can see for ourselves: yet another method of suppressing Islam in penal colonies. The reason is that many people in Russia are embracing Islam while in prison or in penal colonies. The authorities want to stop this, and these additional charges and expanded cases are designed to do precisely that.
The fourth point, which follows from the previous one, is the campaign against converts–people who have embraced Islam. Some people serving sentences for other offences are given additional prison terms under Article 205. I will give the example of a man I met in pre-trial detention. He is an ethnic Russian from Siberia who converted to Islam, had harmed no one, and ran his own business. Yet he ended up in pre-trial detention through the scheme I described earlier: conversations with women who later turned out to be FSB agents. His case is also being heard in this courthouse, and there are dozens, if not hundreds, of similar cases.
Converts to Islam are made to endure unbearable conditions both in prison and outside it. In prison, they may be placed in solitary confinement or punishment cells, or subjected to other forms of pressure. This man told me clearly that people in his own city of Yekaterinburg treated him very badly because of his choice to exercise his legally protected freedom of religion.
I would also like to discuss a phenomenon that spread across Crimea after 2014, having already existed in the Caucasus and continuing there to this day: the abduction of Muslims. A person who practised their religion and attended a mosque could disappear in an instant, and not even a trace could be found. In Crimea, there was a series of such abductions. Ervin Ibragimov, Reshat Shaimardanov, and many others were abducted and have still not been found. This is despite relatives presenting CCTV footage showing police officers detaining the missing person, as well as other evidence. These people simply disappear. This is another way of forcing people into silence. In Crimea, this practice is gaining momentum. In the Caucasus, it has been used in the past and continues to be used today.
Another way Islamophobia is put into practice is by closing mosques or restricting their numbers. For example, after Islam began to gain momentum in Dagestan in 2000, mosques where Islamic outreach was actively taking place, including one on Kotrova Street in Makhachkala, began to close, as did many others. Moreover, despite the millions of Muslims living in Moscow, Yekaterinburg, and St Petersburg, the authorities refuse to permit the construction of mosques in these cities, despite the resources available. In Krasnodar Krai, mosque construction is prohibited at the regional level, and there is not a single mosque. What is this, if not Islamophobia?
Another indication of the authorities’ fear of Muslims and Islam is the removal of imams they consider undesirable. In Crimea, this has so far taken a relatively mild form: imams are accused of engaging in so-called missionary activity. An imam I know personally delivered the Friday khutbah (sermon), as prescribed by the tenets of Islam. But if he does not support the Spiritual Directorate of Muslims of Crimea, he is labelled a missionary and fined, with all the consequences that follow. In addition, the authorities deliberately force many preachers and imams to leave Russia. I have witnessed this happening to some of my own relatives.
One of the clearest examples of lawlessness and fear–I can find no other words for it–is the authorities’ fear of Islam as an ideology, expressed through book bans. Fundamental Islamic texts, such as the sayings and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, Sahih al-Bukhari, Quranic commentaries, the prayer book Fortress of the Muslim, and many other books are banned, and their distribution and sale can lead to prosecution. What is this, if not Islamophobia? Is the state really afraid of these books?
I would also like to address the so-called concept of traditional Islam. There is no such thing as ‘traditional Islam’ or ‘radical Islam’. There is only Islam, as brought by the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), and the teachings he left us. Whether Islam is considered ‘right’ or ‘wrong’, ‘traditional’ or ‘non-traditional’, depends on who is making that judgement. Today, we see muftiates under FSB control accusing everyone else of misinterpreting Islam. According to the Spiritual Directorate of Muslims of Crimea and the authorities, those who follow the state’s will are the ones practising Islam correctly.
One of the most alarming manifestations of Islamophobia, in my view, is media propaganda. It has enveloped the entire population. Today, while held in pre-trial detention and cut off from all communication except television, I am forced to consume this propaganda and witness its anti-Islamic messaging. It appears in countless films, television series, comedy sketches, and caricatures in which Muslims are treated with contempt. This is not to mention Vladimir Volfovich Zhirinovsky and others who have made extremist statements about Islam and Muslims. This propaganda is steeped in hatred and funded by the state.
I have experienced the campaign against Islam not only outside prison but also in my own cell. Whenever a prosecutor visits, they are not interested in whom I speak to in my cell. They are not interested in the cockroaches or rats. They are interested in whether we have prayer rugs. If we do, that is considered dangerous. The detention centre administration therefore repeatedly warns us to hide the rugs so the prosecutor will not see them. I cannot understand what a prosecutor’s visits have to do with prayer rugs. I also cannot understand why pork is served in a detention centre where most detainees are Muslim. Nor can I understand why people like us, who have committed no violations either inside or outside the detention centre, are placed in solitary confinement, single cells, or special units. And this is not to mention books, which we may have to wait months to receive. I emphasise that this includes Islamic books. After strict censorship by security officers, ordinary books may be handed over as soon as the next day, while Islamic books are subjected to rigorous scrutiny.
At the everyday level, we see Islamophobia in schools, where our children are forbidden from attending Friday prayers. They are forbidden to fulfil what they regard as an essential religious obligation to the Lord. As Muslims, we believe that a boy who has reached puberty must attend Friday prayers at a mosque, yet he is not allowed to go. Adults literally form a wall and prevent these children from leaving the school grounds. We see this in Simferopol and throughout Crimea. This is in addition to school curricula that include celebrations contrary to Islamic teachings.
The final point I want to address is the campaign against the khimar (head covering) in Islam and bans on wearing it, as well as the suppression of Islamic symbols. A person can receive an administrative fine or be detained for something as small as a little flag or badge. I know this from personal experience. I warn you that Russia, unable to offer its people an ideology of its own, sees Islam as a competitor. This drives it to fight Islam and Muslims–a force capable of offering solutions to all of humanity’s problems.
21 February 2022
Southern District Military Court, Rostov-on-Don, Russia.
Source: Facebook.
More information: Memorial.
Photo: Crimean Solidarity.