Crimean Tatars experiencing most terrible times since 1944 – Ministry of occupied territories

"Crimean Tatar people are now experiencing, perhaps, the most terrible times since the deportation in 1944. The cases of the disappearance of Crimean Tatars, initiation of proceedings on trumped-up charges, long terms of imprisonment, ban on the Mejlis, creation of controlled self-government bodies, discrediting of representatives of the Crimean Tatar community in the media, ban on entry to Crimea for large number of Ukrainian citizens, ban on rallies – these are the terrible repercussions of the crime of 1944," reads the statement. The Ministry reiterates that Ukraine recognized deportation of the Crimean Tatar people in 1944 as the genocide and expresses the conviction that the present-day crimes of Russia will one day be condemned by the world. "There are already significant changes in the case of Ukraine against the Russian Federation in the UN International Court of Justice," the report says. As reported, May 18, 1944, the deportation of almost 200,000 Crimean Tatars from the Crimean peninsula began. Over 30,000 people were killed in a year.