Crimean political prisoner and civic journalist Osman Arifmemetov has lost 22 kg while incarcerated in a Russian prison.

Crimean Tatar civil journalist Osman Arifmemetov, who was unlawfully sentenced by an occupying court to 14 years in prison, has lost 22 kilograms while incarcerated in the Minusinsk prison in the Krasnoyarsk region of the Russian Federation.

This was reported by Crimean Solidarity, citing the mother of the Kremlin prisoner, Emdie Arifmemetova.

The woman shared that her son is currently in strict confinement (SC) and is unable to call his family, only sending letters. She is unaware of the reasons for his placement in SC, as Osman has not disclosed this information.

For lunch, all inmates are served pork, which the Crimean Tatar does not eat for religious reasons. It is likely that Arifmemetov has lost significant weight due to inadequate nutrition.

Emdie clarified that Osman has scheduled an appointment with a therapist due to back pain. He also underwent tests; his blood analysis is reportedly normal, but the urine analysis is not. The doctor indicated that this is due to kidney issues. The specific problems are unknown to the mother, as her son has not mentioned them.

Additionally, the woman reported that the head of the medical unit allowed the inmate to receive and use only two medications – “Voltaren” for back pain and “Canephron,” which is prescribed for bladder infections. These must be sent by family through a parcel. Other medications that may be needed by Osman require prior approval from the doctors.

It is worth noting that all individuals involved in the case of the “second Simferopol group of Hizb ut-Tahrir,” for which Arifmemetov was tried, were detained on March 27, 2019, in Crimea in the neighborhoods of Kamyanka and Strogonovka in Simferopol, during simultaneous mass searches in dozens of homes of Crimean Tatars.

Due to the large volume of materials, law enforcement divided the criminal case involving 25 participants into five groups of defendants. Almost all detainees are civil journalists or public activists.

By the verdict of the Southern District Military Court on November 24, 2022, Enver Ametov and Yashar Muidinov were sentenced to 13 years in a strict regime colony, while civil journalists Ruslan Suleimanov, Rustem Sheikhaliyev, and Osman Arifmemetov received 14 years. The first four years will be spent in prisons, after which all will be transferred to strict regime colonies.

The defendants did not admit their guilt and consider their prosecution to be politically motivated.

On February 1, 2024, the appellate military court of the Moscow region city of Vlasikha upheld the sentence for the Crimean political prisoners without changes.

In May 2024, the political prisoner arrived at the prison in Minusinsk, Krasnoyarsk region, Russia.