Detention of US journalist Kurmasheva extended by Russian court until February : Analysis

A Russian court has decided to extend the pre-trial detention of Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist, until February. Kurmasheva, who works as an editor for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Tatar-Bashkir service, which is funded by the United States government, has been accused of failing to register as a “foreign agent” and gathering information on the Russian military. If convicted, she could face up to five years in prison. The court ruling was given on Friday in Kazan, and both RFE/RL and Reuters have confirmed the decision. Media freedom organizations and independent journalists have strongly criticized Russia’s targeting of media members, which they claim has escalated since the country invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a New York-based non-profit organization that advocates for media workers worldwide, has joined other press freedom groups in urging US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to assert that Kurmasheva has been unlawfully detained by the Russian government. The letter sent to Blinken states that Russia has not officially informed the US State Department about Kurmasheva’s detention, and they express concern that she has not received any regular consular visits. The appeal also highlights concerns about Moscow’s unjust detention of journalists, including the recent case of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich. It recommends that the State Department update its requirements for designating wrongful detainments to provide increased assistance in situations where journalists are held against their will by foreign governments in the future. Kurmasheva traveled to Russia for a family emergency on May 20, and while waiting for her return flight on June 2, she was briefly detained at Kazan airport and had both of her passports confiscated. On October 11, she was fined 10,000 roubles ($111) for not registering her US passport with Russian authorities, according to court documents. Kurmasheva’s passports were still in custody when she was charged on October 18. RFE/RL has been instructed to register as a foreign agent by Russia since 2017, but the media organization has contested the application of foreign agent laws by Moscow in the European Court of Human Rights. Since 2012, Russia has used foreign agent laws to punish individuals or organizations believed to be critical of the government and receiving funding from foreign sources. Kurmasheva is the second American journalist facing charges in Russia this year, following the arrest of Evan Gershkovich in March. Gershkovich, who is currently held in Lefortovo prison in Moscow, is the first American accused of spying in Russia since the end of the Cold War. His lawyers, the WSJ, and the White House have all denied the allegations, with the US government accusing Russia of harassing its citizens. In a closed-door hearing on Tuesday, Moscow’s court extended Gershkovich’s detention until January 30, as he awaits trial on the espionage charges.

Source: Aljazeera news: Russian court extends detention of US journalist Kurmasheva until February