Top European rights court says Russia responsible for breaching rights in Crimea after 2014 takeover

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Europe’s top human rights court has ruled that Russia was responsible for a string of human rights violations in Crimea since overrunning and later illegally annexing the Black Sea peninsula in 2014. The European Court of Human Rights said Tuesday that Moscow was responsible for rights violations including reining in freedom of expression, freedom of religion and freedom of assembly. Russia also breached international humanitarian law by imposing its laws on the occupied peninsula, the Strasbourg-based court ruled. Moscow maintains that it rightfully took over Crimea after an overwhelming majority of local residents voted to secede from Ukraine and join Russia. It rejects accusations of human rights violations in the region.