A State Department statement said Nariman Dzhelyalov, deputy chairman of the Crimean Tatars' Mejlis, was detained on Saturday by Russian occupation authorities in Crimea. It said at least 45 other Crimean Tatars had also been detained. "We call on the Russian occupation authorities to release them immediately," the statement said, calling it "the latest in a long line of politically motivated raids, detentions, and punitive measures against the Mejlis and its leadership." Ukrainian Foreign Minster Dmytro Kuleba posted a tweet on Saturday saying Russia had "escalated terror in the occupied Crimea" by detaining five people, including Dzhelyalov. Washington has been Kyiv's most powerful backer since Russia annexed Crimea and the conflict in eastern Ukraine began.

Source: bd News24 September 06, 2021 02:26 UTC