SOFIA: A Russian court has sentenced a Bulgarian-Russian dual national to three years in prison on charges of “justifying terrorism,” Bulgaria’s foreign ministry told AFP on Thursday.
The ministry has said the case shows Russia’s “systematic” actions against dissent.
Russia has detained, fined or jailed large numbers of people, including Westerners, on charges of alleged treason, terrorism, sabotage and spying, in what rights groups say is a crackdown on dissent.
Since the start of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, such trials have multiplied and have generally been accompanied by heavy sentences.
A Russian court sentenced the Bulgarian woman, who lives in Russia, on September 9 after finding her guilty of “justifying terrorism” in online posts, a ministry spokesperson said.
The accused had described Crimea as being “illegally occupied” and had expressed support for the Russian Volunteer Corps — a unit of Russian nationals fighting for Ukraine classed as a “terrorist” organization by Moscow — according to a written response this week by the ministry to parliament.
Bulgaria became aware of the case after the defendant’s sister notified the Bulgarian Embassy in Moscow in the spring.
The verdict is not final and can still be appealed.
According to the ministry, the case illustrates the Russian authorities’ “systematic and targeted actions” that are aimed at stifling freedom of expression and controlling information.
The actions result in “disproportionate” sanctions against opinions contrary to Moscow’s official line, “particularly in the context of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine,” it added.
A UN special rapporteur said in September that Russia systematically restricts freedom of expression and other rights as it seeks “to crush civic space... eliminate political opposition, suppress culture (and) distort historical truth.”
Russia sentences Bulgarian to jail after critical online posts
https://arab.news/ckcsd
Russia sentences Bulgarian to jail after critical online posts
- The ministry has said the case shows Russia’s “systematic” actions against dissent
- The verdict is not final and can still be appealed
Venezuela swears in 5,600 troops after US military build-up
- American forces have carried out deadly strikes on more than 20 vessels, killing at least 87
CARACAS: The Venezuelan army swore in 5,600 soldiers on Saturday, as the United States cranks up military pressure on the oil-producing country.
President Nicolas Maduro has called for stepped-up military recruitment after the United States deployed a fleet of warships and the world’s largest aircraft carrier to the Caribbean under the pretext of combating drug trafficking.
American forces have carried out deadly strikes on more than 20 vessels, killing at least 87.
Washington has accused Maduro of leading the alleged “Cartel of the Suns,” which it declared a terrorist organization last month.
Maduro asserts the American deployment aims to overthrow him and seize the country’s oil reserves.
“Under no circumstances will we allow an invasion by an imperialist force,” Col. Gabriel Rendon said Saturday during a ceremony at Fuerte Tiuna, Venezuela’s largest military complex, in Caracas.
According to official figures, Venezuela has around 200,000 troops and an additional 200,000 police officers.
A former opposition governor died in prison on Saturday where he had been detained on charges of terrorism and incitement, a rights group said.
Alfredo Diaz was at least the sixth opposition member to die in prison since November 2024.
They had been arrested following protests sparked by last July’s disputed election, when Maduro claimed a third term despite accusations of fraud.
The protests resulted in 28 deaths and around 2,400 arrests, with nearly 2,000 people released since then.
Diaz, governor of Nueva Esparta from 2017 to 2021, “had been imprisoned and held in isolation for a year; only one visit from his daughter was allowed,” said Alfredo Romero, director of the NGO Foro Penal, which defends political prisoners.
The group says there are at least 887 political prisoners in Venezuela.
Opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado condemned the deaths of political prisoners in Venezuela during “post-electoral repression.”
“The circumstances of these deaths — which include denial of medical care, inhumane conditions, isolation, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment — reveal a sustained pattern of state repression,” Machado said in a joint statement with Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, the opposition candidate she believes won the election.
