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Who is Evan Gershkovich and what does Russia accuse him of?

2023-04-18 14:44:21Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Who is Evan Gershkovich and what does Russia accuse him of?
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is being held in Lefortovo prison in Moscow.

On Tuesday, a Moscow court rejected American journalist Evan Gershkovich's request to be released from custody while he is being investigated on espionage-related charges.

The Leftorovo District Court in Moscow pronounced this decision against the American journalist, who was present in court. The American ambassador to Russia, Lynne Tracy, along with 10 journalists, were also allowed to participate in this court session.

"The decision of the court of first instance, which chose arrest as a restrictive measure, should not be changed. Therefore, the request of the defense will not be fulfilled", said the court, without giving further explanations.

Who is Gershkovich?

Shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine in February of last year, the Wall Street Journal hired reporter Gershkovich, who had been covering Russia for more than five years. Gershkovich, 31, whose parents immigrated to the United States and left the Soviet Union behind during the Cold War, is also fluent in Russian.

What are the circumstances of his arrest?

On March 30, the FSB security service announced that it had arrested the journalist for trying to obtain information about Russia's military-industrial complex while traveling to Yekaterinburg, which is 1,400 kilometers (880 miles) east of Moscow. The newspaper where he was working reported that they had last heard from him the day before, when he had arrived at a restaurant near the city.

He was transported back to the capital and charged with espionage; if convicted, he could spend up to 20 years in prison. He rejected the accusation and the newspaper where he was working did the same.

What do the USA and Russia say about this case?

Kjo është cilësuar si "krejtësisht e paligjshme" nga presidenti Joe Biden. Të hënën e kaluar, Shtetet e Bashkuara e deklaruan zyrtarisht se ai ishte arrestuar në mënyrë të paligjshme, se akuzat se ai është një spiun ishin të rreme dhe se çështja ishte kthyer në çështje politike.

Kremlini pretendon se Gershkovich ishte "kapur në flagrancë", por Rusia nuk ka bërë ende publik asnjë dokumentacion mbështetës lidhur me këtë.

Ku është duke u mbajtur gazetari?

Gershkovich është duke u mbajtur në paraburgim në burgun Lefortovo në Moskë, i cili historikisht është përdorur nga FSB dhe KGB-ja sovjetike, për të strehuar të dyshuar për krime të rënda si spiunazhi.

Ambasadorja e SHBA-së, Lynne Tracy, arriti ta vizitonte atje për herë të parë të hënën. Ajo tha se ai ishte në gjendje të mirë, por dha pak detaje.

In a handwritten letter dated April 5 to his parents, Gershkovic said he was reading, writing, exercising and "will not lose hope."

What then?

Tuesday's hearing is more procedural — about how Gershkovich should be held while he awaits trial — and will not go into the charges in detail. Investigators are still working on the details of the case, which could last months or years, like the case of American Paul Whelan.

Whelan, a former marine, was arrested in December 2018, held for 18 months in Lefortovo and jailed for 16 years in June 2020 on espionage charges. The case has been evaluated by Washington as wrongly arrested./REL


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