Mathematician Mikhail Verbitsky was able to leave Armenia after being detained at the request of Russia; he is already in Israel

Russian mathematician and blogger Mikhail Verbitsky, detained on June 12 in Armenia at the request of Russian authorities, was able to leave the country and flew to Israel. Verbitsky’s Armenian lawyer Vache Simonyan spoke about this in an interview with Meduza.

“He is already in Tel Aviv,” Simonyan clarified, answering the question about whether Verbitsky could leave Armenia. It was previously reported that after the mathematician was released from custody on June 15, the country's authorities still could not allow the mathematician to cross the border, since his name remains in the Russian wanted list. How Verbitsky, despite this, managed to leave the country, Simonyan did not specify in the interview.

The lawyer also said that cases of detention of Russian citizens in Armenia at the request of Moscow occur regularly, but he is not aware of cases of extradition to Russia in politically motivated cases. According to him, Armenian courts take into account the risk of political persecution and torture.

Verbitsky was detained on June 12 at Zvartnots airport. In Russia, he is accused of justifying terrorism and “discrediting” the Russian army. The reason for criminal prosecution was his statements about the terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall.

On June 15, Armenian authorities released Verbitsky from custody. As Simonyan explained, the Russian side did not send the necessary documents for extradition within 72 hours and did not properly confirm the request. The lawyer suggested that the Russian authorities might not have time to prepare the documents due to the long weekend associated with Russia Day on June 12.