Russian journalist avoids prison sentence after being convicted of ‘justifying terrorism’

In an unusually lenient ruling, a court in Moscow has fined Russian journalist Nadezhda Kevorkova 600,000 rubles (€6,300) for “justifying terrorism” in social media posts she made, despite prosecutors requesting a custodial sentence of six years, independent news outlet Mediazona reported on Wednesday.

Kevorkova, who was immediately set free in the courtroom as cries of “hurrah” went up from the public gallery, was found guilty for reposting two articles on her Telegram channel, one of which was about a 2005 raid by Islamist militants on Nalchik, a city in the Russian North Caucasus republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, while the other was an article about the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Kaloy Akhilgov, Kevorkova’s lawyer, told Mediazona that the defence did not plan to appeal the ruling, noting that receiving “a fine for such charges should be considered an acquittal” in present-day Russia, though he said he had no idea if the prosecution planned to appeal.

Akhilgov argued during the trial that Russia’s maintenance of formal ties with the Taliban, despite having designated the group as a “terrorist organisation”, was tantamount to justifying terrorism. In December, Vladimir Putin signed a law paving the way for Russia to remove the group from the country’s list of terrorist organisations, amid ever closer ties between Moscow and Kabul.

Kevorkova specialises in the Middle East and the North Caucasus and has contributed to numerous Russian media outlets, including independent outlets such as Novaya Gazeta and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, as well as state-backed media such as RT and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. Her Telegram channel, which she used to comment on events in the Middle East, was deleted after her arrest.

In a similarly lenient ruling in February, a court in the city of Khabarovsk, in Russia’s Far East, fined journalist Sergey Mingazov 700,000 rubles (€7,700) for “spreading false information” about the Russian army for reposting articles about the Bucha massacre in the early days of the war, despite the prosecution asking for six years in prison.