50949_WKBW_7_Problem_Solvers_658x90.png

Actions

Moscow police detain opposition politician

Russia Opposition
Posted

Moscow police have detained one of the few politicians openly opposing the Kremlin's war in Ukraine who remains in Russia.

A journalist friend says police grabbed Ilya Yashin while they were walking in a Moscow park on Monday. After charges of discrediting the Russian army were filed against him last month, Yashin said he wouldn't run away or retract his criticism of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Russian authorities have been cracking down on war critics since adopting a law criminalizing spreading false information about its military shortly after its troops rolled into Ukraine in late on February.

Aside from criminal prosecutions, public figures in Russia have reportedly faced pressure from the authorities publicly to announce their support of the country’s operation in Ukraine.