OREANDA-NEWS. The US State Department called on the Russian Federation to release the first deputy chairman of the Mejlis of Crimean Tatars Nariman Dzhelyalov immediately. He was detained on the peninsula, and at least 45 other Crimean Tatars. «This is the latest in a long series of politically motivated raids, detentions and punitive measures against the Mejlis and it's leadership, who were repressed for resisting Russia's attempt to annex Crimea», State Department spokesman Ned Price said on the night of Monday, September 6.

He stressed that «the United States unwaveringly supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine», and «Crimea is Ukraine». This was confirmed by Washington at the founding conference of the Crimean Platform initiative on August 23 in Kiev, Price recalled.

On August 23, the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia in Crimea, reported that unknown persons damaged a gas pipeline near the village of Perevalnoye, after which a criminal case was opened under the article on intentional destruction or damage to property. On September 3 and 4, the homes of five Crimean Tatars, including the well-known Crimean politician, deputy chairman of the Mejlis Nariman Dzhelyalov, were searched in connection with the case of damage to the gas pipeline. After that, all five were detained, their whereabouts are unknown.

In protest against the detentions, several dozen people came out to the FSB building in Simferopol. The participants of the protest action were severely detained. According to the Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for Human Rights Lyudmila Denisova, more than 50 Crimean Tatars were «pushed into buses, using brute force, beating on the kidneys, and taken to various police stations», where they were interrogated without access to lawyers.