Hizb ut-Tahrir case ends in acquittal for first time

The Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don acquitted one of the defendants in the Hizb ut-Tahrir case. This was reported on the court's website.

Ernes Ametov was released in the courtroom. According to MBKh Media, this is the first acquittal in the Hizb ut-Tahrir case.

Ametov was charged under the article on the violent seizure of power (Article 278 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and under the article on participation in the activities of an organization that is recognized as terrorist in Russia (Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code).

Along with Ametov, seven other alleged members of Hizb ut-Tahrir were tried on September 16. They received 13 to 19 years in a maximum security prison colony under the same articles of the Criminal Code that Ametov was charged with.

In total, about a hundred people are involved in the Hizb ut-Tahrir case, MBKh Media reports. Some of the sentences have already been handed down, while some cases have not yet been sent to court. All of the defendants are Crimean Tatars living in Crimea.

Correction. The original headline of the news story stated that the case was being heard in Crimea. In reality, the Southern District Military Court that heard the case is located in Rostov-on-Don. Meduza's editorial board apologizes for the error.

• Mass persecution of members of Hizb ut-Tahrir, a recognized terrorist organization in Russia, began shortly after the annexation of Crimea.
• The Memorial Center recognizes all the defendants in the case as political prisoners. Human rights activists link the criminal prosecution to the organization's position against the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Federation.