RUSSIA ACCUSES FORBES JOURNALIST OF SPREADING FAKE NEWS ABOUT MILITARY, PUTS HIM UNDER HOUSE ARREST

Russia has accused a journalist with the Forbes magazine of spreading fake news about the Russian military and has put him under house arrest, according to state media.

The journalist, Sergey Mingazov, works with the Russian edition of the Forbes magazine. The alleged fake news that he spread is related to content he reposted in April 2022.

Mingazov could be imprisoned for 10 years if he is convicted, according to Associated Press.

Russia has been cracking down on press since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Within weeks of President Vladimir Putin announcing the war on Ukraine, dubbed as a special military operation, Russia enacted a new law that blocked Facebook and other major foreign news outlets and made way for 15-year sentences for those convicted of spreading 'fake news'.

Forbes journalist's arrest related to post on Bucha massacre

Mingazov has been put under house arrest in the Russian city of Khabarovsk where he was detained on Friday, according to state-run news agency TASS.

Mingazov's arrest is related to a post that he reshared on his Telegram channel in April 2022 about Russian massacre in Ukraine's Bucha.

In the initial days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian forces reached the outskirts of Ukrainian capital Kyiv and occupied the region for weeks. One such place was Bucha where Russian atrocities were uncovered after Moscow ordered the forces to withdraw to focus on Ukraine's Donbas region in the east. When the Ukrainian soldiers moved into Bucha, they found that more than 400 people were killed by Russians.

"Dozens of bodies of men, women and children lay on the streets, in yards and homes, and in mass graves. Some showed signs of torture. Day after day, body collectors found the dead in basements, lying in doorways, deep in the woods. The once comfortable suburb was shocked and silent. More than 400 bodies were found," reported Associated Press.

CNN quoted Mingazov's employer, Forbes Russia, as saying that he will be under house arrest for at least two months as he would await his trial.

The posts about Bucha massacre that Mingazov shared were from BBC's Russian service and Radio Freedom. They were not from Forbes.

Mingazov's lawyer Konstantin Bubon said that he is accused of spreading "knowingly false information" about the Russian armed forces "under the guise" of reliable reporting, according to CNN.

During the house arrest, Mingazov is banned from using the internet and there are also restrictions on his communication with people except for family, investigators, lawyers, and medical personnel, said Bubon.

Russian crackdown on media after Ukraine invasion

Following the passage of a new law that clamped down on media freedom, international outlets like the BBC, CNN, CBS, and ABC suspended operations in Russia.

On its part, Russia also restricted access to BBC Russia, Radio Liberty, and Latvia-based Meduza, according to CNN.

The Moscow Times, an English-language Russia-focussed news website, also moved out of Russia and relocated its headquarters to Amsterdam.

In March 2023, Evan Gershkovich of The Wall Street Journal was arrested in Russia on charges of espionage. He has been in jail since.

Last month, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said that six journalists were arrested in Russia.

2024-04-27T18:56:06Z dg43tfdfdgfd