Kremlin critic Yashin loses appeal in widening crackdown
The Hindu
Kremlin critic Ilya Yashin on April 19 lost an appeal against what his supporters say was a politically motivated decision to jail him for eight-and-a-half years for criticising Moscow’s assault on Ukraine.
Kremlin critic Ilya Yashin on April 19 lost an appeal against what his supporters say was a politically motivated decision to jail him for eight-and-a-half years for criticising Moscow's assault on Ukraine.
The former Moscow councillor's appeal was rejected as authorities take a crackdown on freedoms in Russia to an unprecedented new level, with independent media shut down and key Opposition figures behind bars or in exile.
Speaking in court, Mr. Yashin said he had been put behind bars for "speaking the truth" over Moscow's actions in Ukraine and Russia.
"The sentence delivered against me is amazing: eight and a half years for a 20-minute speech on the internet," he said.
"In prison, I met murderers, rapists, and robbers who have received lesser sentences for their crimes."
Last year, Mr. Yashin, 39, described the murder of Ukrainian civilians in Bucha as a "massacre", referring to a town near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv where civilians were found killed after Russian forces pulled back.
In December 2022, Mr. Yashin was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years in prison for spreading "false information" about Russia's offensive in Ukraine.