Russians conduct searches among Jehovah's Witnesses in Crimea

Russians conducted at least nine searches among representatives of the Jehovah's Witnesses religious organisation in temporarily occupied Crimea, and two house arrests were reported.  Source: Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Parliament Human Rights Commissioner, on Telegram; a statement by the European Association of Jehovah's Witnesses  Details: Lubinets said that a Russian secret service searched the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses in Armiansk, Simferopol, Saky and Dzhankoi.

In total, the Russian Federation has opened more than 100 criminal cases against Crimeans on religious grounds, including 17 against Jehovah's Witnesses.

On 18 August, the European Association of Jehovah's Witnesses said that at least nine searches of members' homes took place on 14 and 16 August. Quote: "In Simferopol, a search was conducted at the home of Kateryna Melnychuk. The woman felt sick, and her husband's blood pressure rose.

Kateryna was informed that a criminal case had been opened against her and, after interrogation, was released on her own recognisance." "In Armiansk, security forces searched the man's two homes. After that, he was taken for interrogation.

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In the town of Saky, seven security officers in balaclavas, four of whom were armed, conducted a two-hour search of the house of a 62-year-old believer." Details: The Association is also aware of searches of Dmytro Zakharevych in Simferopol. The court placed him and another believer under house arrest.

Details of the searches in Dzhankoi are not yet available.

Background:

• In February 2023, the occupation court of Yalta sentenced four followers of the Church of Jehovah's Witnesses to various terms of imprisonment, accused of participating in the organisation and financing of an "extremist community".
• In October 2021, the so-called Gagarinsky District Court of Sevastopol illegally sentenced a follower of the Jehovah's Witnesses religious association, Ukrainian citizen Ihor Shmidt, to six years in a general regime prison.

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