General Staff: Russia's FSB conducting 'filtration' in occupied Crimea

In the Crimean town of Krasnoperekopsk, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) is conducting so-called filtration measures, which involve undressing, interrogating, and beating civilians, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said on March 30.

The "filtration measures" are interrogation procedures conducted by Russian forces with civilians on occupied Ukrainian territories, which may lead to torture and kidnapping.

The General Staff added that Russian occupying authorities continue pressuring civilians and violating their human rights on Ukraine's Crimean peninsula. It has been under Russian occupation since 2014 following a fake referendum staged by Moscow to annex the territory.

Krasnoperekopsk is located in Crimea's north, just 25 kilometers away from the east bank of Kherson Oblast, occupied by Russian troops shortly after the full-scale invasion began.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed since the start of Russia's all-out war to return all of Ukraine's territory, including Crimea.

On March 23, Andrii Yusov, spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence, said that the Russian command and Moscow-installed proxies in Crimea had begun evacuation from the occupied peninsula, selling their real estate and taking families away.

Retired U.S. General Ben Hodges, who commanded U.S. troops in Europe, told the Ukrainian publication Ukrinform on Feb. 18 that Ukraine had a realistic chance to liberate Russian-occupied Crimea by the end of the summer if it gets long-range missiles.

Blinken: Ukraine likely to regain territory through mix of diplomatic, military action

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Ukraine will likely regain its territory through a mix of military and diplomatic means, France24 reported on March 24.

Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk