Five journalists working for independent media were arrested on Wednesday evening and Thursday, March 27, in Russia, where a crackdown targeting any challenge to power is escalating. During the night, the police arrested Yekaterina Anikivych from the independent news site SOTAvisionand Konstantin Zharov RusNewsNGO OVD-InfoHe specializes in monitoring repression in Russia.
According to a witness of the scene cited by this organization, Mr. Jharov was assaulted by the police and threatened with sexual violence. “They kicked me with their feet, put a foot on my head, twisted my fingers and mocked me when I tried to get up.”Mr. Zharov, quoted by his media, RusNews. He said he suffered head injuries, bruises, disfigured and sprained fingers.
According to him, the violence was triggered by the shooting near the home of another journalist, Antonina Favorskaya. SOTAvisionHe was arrested on Wednesday evening, soon after he was released from administrative detention for ten days for disobeying the police.
The journalist's apartment was raided on Wednesday evening, as were his parents, his lawyer, Mikhail Priokov, cited. SOTAvision.
Regarding the activities of Navalny's movement
Two other journalists, Alexandra Astakova and Anastasia Moussatova, who had come to meet their colleague after being released from custody, were also arrested and taken for questioning, according to the same source.
According to Russian media in exile MediazonaSpecialized in tracking legal cases, target oriented case mme Favorskaya has been linked to the activities of the movement of her opponent, Alexei Navalny, who died in prison on February 16. Its institutions are categorized “extremists” By Russian justice.
Antonina Favorskaya Mr. He has been covering up the investigations against Navalny for years. It was he who shot the last video showing the opponent still alive during the court hearing on February 15. On March 17, he was arrested hours after placing flowers on an opponent's grave. Mediazona.