Lifenews journalists were handed over to Kadyrov

Employees of the Lifenews television channel Operator Marat Saichenko and journalist Oleg Sidyakin, arrested on May 18 near Kramatorsky, were released and flew to Grozny on Sunday night. This was announced on his Instagram by the head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov.

“Oleg Sidyakin and Marat Saichenko to free! The plane with them headed from Kyiv to Grozny!” Wrote Kadyrov. “Russian President Vladimir Putin proved to the whole world that the citizens of our country are under reliable protection, wherever they are !!! I am on behalf of the journalists, from all residents of Chechnya I want to express great gratitude to our national leader Vladimir Putin for the salvation of Sidyakin and Saychenko! Marat and Oleg will rest in Grozny until the morning, and tomorrow in Moscow relatives, friends and colleagues will be able to meet. ”

According to Lifenews, "representatives of the head of Chechnya for several days led difficult negotiations with the Ukrainian authorities and the leaders of the SBU." The aircraft provided by Kadyrov “was in Kyiv for almost four days, ready to fly out at any moment,” the report said.

In a video shot on an airplane, Saichenko and Sidyakin thank Putin for his release.

Saichenko later said that they were kept in unbearable conditions. According to him, journalists spent the first two days in an earthen pit with bags on their heads and tied arms and legs. They were taken to Kyiv in an iron box. There they were "subjected to severe psychological pressure" and threatened to blame weapons.

“When the handcuffs and bags were put on us again on our heads, there were the worst thoughts. But when we were put in the car where we heard Chechen speech, I immediately felt better. I understood who intervened,” Saichenko told about his release.

On Thursday, Secretary of the National Security Council of Ukraine Andrei Parubiy said that LifeNews employees will be transferred to Russia. He emphasized that Sidyakin and Saichenko were detained as part of a group of terrorists and cannot be considered journalists. "Let us think: if a journalistic group of any of the television channels was stopped near St. Petersburg and modern weapons were found in their trunk, then I think that the leadership of the Russian Federation would not discuss whether they should not have double standards. After all, people who came with weapons to Ukraine are terrorists, I will think of these two people. And I will give respect to these two people. And relative to these two people. Investigators, ”said Parubiy.

On May 18, official Kyiv announced the detention of "terrorists who were preparing to fire a military airfield in Kramatorsk from a portable anti-aircraft missile system." It was emphasized that such models of MANPADS are not in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"Unknown who introduced themselves to journalists and citizens of the Russian Federation, were detained and transferred to law enforcement agencies for conducting an inquiry. It is significant that these persons were in the terrorist detachment and filmed their actions online," the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense said.

The Russian side raised the question of the fate of journalists in international organizations, in particular, at a meeting of the Permanent Council of the OSCE in Vienna. The results of the discussion disappointed Moscow. “We consider it an absolutely intolerable situation when detained journalists are denied a meeting with lawyers, consular workers and OSCE representatives. Complete obscurity causes fears of their relatives and relatives,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.