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Russian court sentences opposition leader to community service for ‘insulting public officials’
A Russian district court in Ryazan sentenced the leader of the local PARNAS branch, Yuriy Bogomolov, to 250 hours of community services for insulting judges on social media, RIA Novosti reported.
According to investigators, in August of 2015, Bogomolov posted on the Russian social network site VKontakte, in which he “publicly insulted and degraded the honor and dignity of the authorities” of the judges of the Moscow District Court of Ryazan, as well as judges of the Ryazan regional court “in …
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PACE calls for Savchenko's immediate release
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has called on Russia to immediately release former Ukrainian pilot, Nadiya Savchenko.
“The continued detention of Savchenko is only worsening Russia’s international image and its relations with European countries. Savchenko’s release would be a strong move towards complying with the Minsk Agreements. It would also be a step towards resolving the current conflict in eastern Ukraine. Russia should not waste this opportunity,” a statement …
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Kadyrov's spokesman files request to open criminal case against Russian opposition leader Ilya Yashin
Alvi Karimov, spokesman for Chechen head Ramzan Kadyrov, has filed a request to open a criminal case against Russian opposition leader Ilya Yashin, who recently published a report criticizing the leader of Chechnya.
The request was filed with the Russian Investigative Committee and Prosecutor General, Interfax reported.
Karimov said that the report written by PARNAS’ Deputy Chairman Ilya Yashin was done in a “provocative and aggressive manner” directed against Kadyrov and the people of …
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Pyatt: Crimea has become a disaster area in regard to human rights
The US Ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt, stated that the annexation of Crimea and the retaliation against the Crimean Tatars has not fallen off the American diplomatic radar. “We aren’t going to forget about the situation with the Crimean Tatars. Crimea has become a human rights disaster area,” the Ambassador said in his interview with the ZIK Ukrainian TV Channel.
Pyatt added that this issue is present in their constant dialogue with Russia. The US Ambassador to Ukraine reiterated that …
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French newspaper raises questions over Lesin's death
Recently deceased Mikhail Lesin, former mass media adviser to the Russian President and former head of Gazprom-Media, could also have been the “main formal liaison” between Russian authorities and the United States. French newspaper Le Figaro quoted a source close to US intelligence in their report that offers to carefully study Lesin’s apparent assassination.
Lesin was one of the richest men in Russia. Le Figaro’s source said that he could have filled the role of “informal liaison” under …