A well-known Bashkir activist who fled Russia fearing persecution over his activities raising awareness about problems faced by Muslims in the country has been held in a deportation center in Greece for almost two months, where authorities tell him they may deport him back to Russia.
After fleeing Russia in 2014, Tahir Minnebayev eventually settled in Ukraine, where he stayed until late February this year when he, his wife, and their four children had to leave the country for Germany after Russia launched its ongoing unprovoked invasion of its western neighbor.
Minnebayev told RFE/RL on June 30 that he was detained in Greece in May without any explanation while he was collecting humanitarian aid for children in Ukraine.
Minnebayev said that, after his initial campaign in April to collect aid in Germany for Ukrainian children was successful, he decided to organize more collections and traveled to Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Greece, and Turkey on aid missions.
"When I was going to leave Greece for Turkey on a ferry, Greek border guards detained me," the 40-year-old activist said.
"I don't know why I was detained. All my papers are in order."
Along with his valid travel documents and a valid German visa that allows him to travel across Schengen zone member-states, including Greece, Minnebayev says he also has a document confirming that he is under the protection of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. However, Greek authorities ignored that document, Minnebayev says.
"I tried to explain them that I may face imprisonment or even death in Russia. They then told me to file a political asylum request in Greece, but I already filed such a request in Germany, where my wife and little children are now. They then said they will deport me to Russia if I do not officially ask for political asylum in Greece," Minnebayev said.
According to Minnebayev, he asked the Ukrainian Embassy in Greece for legal assistance given he was in the country collecting humanitarian aid for Ukrainian children. However, he says, Ukrainian diplomats told him that they cannot provide him with any legal assistance as he is not a Ukrainian citizen.