Moscow Uses Pseudo-Courts to Seize Ukrainian Property on Temporarily Occupied Territories
In the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, the Russian occupation authorities continue to seize private housing belonging to Ukrainians, evicting the legal owners with the help of pseudo-judicial decisions.
The Gaze reports on this, referring to the Center for Countering Disinformation.
Russian occupiers are using a well-established scheme to illegally seize the homes of Ukrainians in the temporarily occupied territories (TOT). A striking example is the situation in Melitopol, where an entire apartment building with more than 30 apartments was taken away from its legal owners.
Although the owners, who purchased the property before the occupation, filed applications to prevent their apartments from being declared “ownerless” in 2023, the occupying authorities quickly re-registered the building to the so-called “government of Zaporizhzhia region” and achieved the eviction of the residents through illegitimate courts.
Similar looting practices are systematically carried out in Mariupol and other captured cities. There, too, housing evicted by pseudo-court decisions is quickly transferred to Russian military personnel, officials of the occupation administrations, and specially imported Russian citizens.
“These are not single cases, but a systematic policy of looting by Russia. Moscow is purposefully engaged in driving Ukrainians out of the occupied territories and replacing them with a population loyal to the Kremlin,” the statement said.
The temporarily occupied territories are parts of Ukraine's sovereign territory that have been seized and are controlled by the Russian Federation. The occupation began in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea and parts of Donbas. The Russian occupation authorities are pursuing a policy of forced Russification, illegal passportization, and systematic looting, including the appropriation of property and the displacement of the Ukrainian population.
In addition to seizing property and threatening to terminate parental rights, Russia is actively militarizing and ideologically indoctrinating children in the temporarily occupied territories, investing billions of rubles in programs aimed at raising future soldiers and loyal supporters of the Kremlin. This campaign, whose funding has increased significantly, includes the expansion of military-patriotic centers and movements.
As The Gaze reported earlier, Russia is utilizing local schools to introduce military-related subjects starting from the 8th grade (with plans to extend to first graders) to instill combat skills and anti-Western sentiment, thereby cultivating future soldiers and loyal Kremlin followers.
Read more on The Gaze: Russia’s War on Ukraine: An Unprecedented Act of Genocide Targeting Ukraine’s National Identity and Existence