Published September 19,2023
Subscribe
A Russian courtroom on Tuesday deferred a ruling on the pre-trial detention of US journalist Evan Gershkovich, held in a infamous Moscow jail on spy costs for nearly six months.
The 31-year-old, who’s the Wall Street Journal’s Moscow correspondent, was detained in late March throughout a reporting journey to the Urals metropolis of Yekaterinburg.
Gershkovich smiled from behind the defendant’s glass cage as he stored his fingers within the pockets of his denims, an AFP reporter at a courtroom in Moscow mentioned.
The Moscow City Court, the place the listening to was held, later mentioned it’ll ship the case to a different courtroom within the Russian capital — the Lefortovo Court.
Last month, a Russian courtroom prolonged the journalist’s detention by one other three months till November 30.
Gershkovich continued to report from Russia regardless of a big a part of the Western press leaving the nation after Moscow despatched troops to Ukraine.
Gershkovich grew to become the primary Western journalist to be arrested by Moscow on espionage costs for the reason that Cold War, and his arrest marked an additional crackdown on media freedom in Russia.
US authorities and the Wall Street Journal have denied the costs, saying Gershkovich was merely doing his job.
US ambassador Lynne Tracy was current on the listening to and instructed reporters that Washington’s place on the reporter’s case “remains unwavering.”
“The Russian government locked Evan up for doing his job,” she mentioned.
Russia has not offered any public proof of the accusations towards Gershkovich.
Tracy visited Gershkovich final week on the Lefortovo high-security jail the place he has been held.
“Evan is fully aware of the gravity of his situation yet he remains remarkably strong,” she instructed reporters on Tuesday.
“He knew, for example, that his parents delivered a petition to the United Nations last week, a petition that calls on the UN to make clear that he has been arbitrarily detained and to push for his release,” she mentioned.
“He also shared that he is keeping his mind sharp through games of chess by mail with his father.”
The US has mentioned it’s working to carry him dwelling.
Tracy mentioned it was “unacceptable” that Gershkovich and former US marine Paul Whelan “still languish in Russian prisons”.
Source: www.anews.com.tr