Russia jails US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva
July 22, 2024
Alsu Kurmasheva, a US-Russian journalist, has been sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison after a secret trial, court officials said Monday.
Kurmasheva, 47, who worked for the US government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) was accused of "spreading false information" about the Russian army due to her reporting on the invasion of Ukraine.
Her sentencing in the city of Kazan came just days after Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was convicted of espionage in Yekaterinburg. Gershkovich was give a 16-year jail term after a trail the US called politically motivated.
'A mockery of justice'
A court spokesperson confirmed Kurmasheva's sentence to The Associated Press, but refused to give further information on her trial, citing security concerns.
Stephen Capus, RFE/RL president, called the trial a "mockery of justice."
"It's beyond time for this American citizen, our dear colleague, to be reunited with her loving family," Capus told AP.
Kurmasheva, who is based in Prague with her husband and two daughters, was taken into custody in October 2023 and charged with failing to register as a foreign agent.
Since soon after its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has required journalists from abroad to register as foreign agents. However, many journalists have reported being targeted by security services despite having registered.
The US has accused Russia of arbitrarily detaining its citizens, like Gershkovich and basketball star Brittney Griner, in order to try and negotiate favorable prisoner swaps.
es/lo (AP, Reuters)
Correction, July 24, 2024: An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of Brittney Griner. DW apologizes for the error.