Day: March 1, 2023
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Pussy Riot Member Accused of ‘Insulting Religious Sensibilities’
Russia has opened a criminal case against Pussy Riot founding member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova for allegedly “insulting religious sensibilities,” human rights lawyer Pavel Chikov said on his Telegram channel on Wednesday. The Investigative Committee opened the case due to various of Tolokonnikova’s posts on social media, Chikov said, adding that a series of police searches had…
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Law Hiding Russian Real Estate Ownership Data Comes Into Force
New legislation preventing the general public from accessing entries to Russia’s real estate register came into force on Wednesday, independent Russian-language news website Meduza reported. The move, which restricts information on the register to “competent state agencies” is expected to act as a massive hindrance to Russian investigative journalists, who have used the register on…
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Putin Opens Prestige Moscow Metro Project Via Video Link
Russian President Vladimir Putin officially opened the Moscow metro’s Big Circle Line on Wednesday, though he surprisingly elected to do so via video link rather than attending the ceremony in person. Calling the new line “a much-needed project for the city,” Putin congratulated “Muscovites and residents of the Moscow region,” on the opening of the…
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Russian Man Arrested for Daughter’s Anti-War Drawing
Russian authorities have arrested a single father and sent his daughter to an orphanage after she drew an anti-war picture at school, the independent rights watchdog OVD-Info reported Wednesday. Alexei Moskalev, 53, and his daughter Masha Moskaleva, 12, came to the attention of local law enforcement in the town of Yefremov in the Tula region,…
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Sean Penn’s Zelensky Doc Substitutes Bromance for Storytelling
Sean Penn and Aaron Kaufmann’s long-awaited documentary about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which recently premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, is proof that even with the best luck and access imaginable, an extraordinary journalistic opportunity can easily be missed. Double Oscar-winning actor-turned-activist Penn and his crew were in Kyiv filming the documentary as the Russian…
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Belarus Leader ‘Fully’ Supports China’s Ukraine Plan
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko told his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that his country “fully supports” Beijing’s proposals for ending the Ukraine war when the two leaders met Wednesday. The state visit to the Chinese capital by Lukashenko — a staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin — comes after Beijing published a position paper on…
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Putin Signs Law Banning Officials From Using Foreign Words
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed legislation that bans government officials from using foreign words in official documents and correspondence as well as while carrying out their duties. “When using Russian as the state language of the Russian Federation, it is not allowed to use words and expressions that do not correspond to the norms…
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Russian Tech Giant VK Orders Employees to Return From Abroad
Russian tech giant VK has effectively banned employees from working abroad permanently, state news agencies reported Wednesday, citing a company letter to workers. VK, which employs more than 10,000 people, owns the popular Mail.ru email and news services as well as the VKontakte and Odnoklassniki social networks, among others. Its letter to employees comes as…
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‘Russia Does Not Count People,’ Zelensky Says of Brutal Bakhmut Fight
Pressure is mounting on Ukrainian forces as fighting for the eastern frontline city of Bakhmut is getting ever more brutal with Russia losing hundreds of troops a day, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday. As the battle raged, Moscow said it shot down Ukrainian drones targeting civilian sites in Russian territory while another one crashed near the capital.…