The first group of Russian ex-prisoners to be granted amnesty for their participation in the war in Ukraine with PMC Wagner includes people who were convicted of murder, robbery, organized crime, and amphetamine production, according to the independent outlet Agentstvo and the BBC’s Russia Service .

Ukraine doesn’t want Putin’s Orthodox Christmas ceasefire Mikhail Klimentyev / AP / Scanpix / LETA Orthodox Christians in both Ukraine and Russia celebrate Christmas on its Julian date, January 7. Making yet another offensively “unifying” gesture, Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, proposed that Russia and Ukraine cease their “infighting” for 36 hours, to let Orthodox believers attend Christmas church services.

Marat Kasem, editor-in-chief of Sputnik Litva (the Lithuanian division of the pro-Kremlin news outlet Sputnik), was taken into custody in Latvia, reports RIA Novosti. According to sources cited by RIA Novosti, Kasem is suspected of espionage and violating EU sanctions against Russia. On December 5, 2022, a court in Riga issued an order for his arrest. Russia Today CEO Dmitry Kiselev says that Kasem is a Latvian citizen.

Among the group of Russian prisoners, who, according to the creator of the Wagner PMC Yevgeny Prigozhin, had their convictions for participation in the war expunged, were people convicted of murder, robbery, organizing a criminal group and producing amphetamine. This is the conclusion reached by the Agency and the BBC Russian Service , which identified several people from the group.

Marat Kasem, editor-in-chief of the pro-Kremlin publication Sputnik Lithuania, has been detained in Latvia. This was reported by the RIA Novosti agency with reference to the telegram channel Sputnik Near Abroad. According to the Telegram channel, Kasem is suspected of violating EU economic sanctions against Russia and of espionage. On January 5, a court in Riga chose a measure of restraint for him in the form of detention.

The Office of Zelensky was reacted with the words "leave the hypocrisy for yourself" Mikhail Klimentiev / AP / Scanpix / Leta Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu to declare a ceasefire in Ukraine - for 36 hours . According to Putin, Russian troops should cease to fire at Orthodox Christmas, from 12:00 on January 6 to 24:00 on January 7, 2023 (Moscow time). The ceasefire should act “along the entire line of combat contact of the parties” in Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin has instructed Russian Defense Ministry Sergey Shoigu to declare a temporary ceasefire along the entire line of contact between the Russian and Ukrainian armies for Orthodox Christmas, the Kremlin reported on Monday. According to the announcement, the ceasefire will be in effect from noon on January 6 until midnight on January 7. Putin’s instruction comes just hours after Russia's spiritual leader, Patriarch Kirill, called for a Christmas ceasefire.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke by phone on Thursday, the Turkish news agency Anadolu reported, citing the Erdoğan administration. The two leaders reportedly discussed energy issues, the war in Ukraine, and Syria, among other things.

Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed to introduce a ceasefire along the entire line of military contact between the parties in Ukraine during the celebration of Orthodox Christmas. This was reported by Interfax , said in the Kremlin. According to the report, the ceasefire will be in effect from 12:00 on January 6 to 24:00 on January 7. Putin gave such an order to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in connection with the appeal of Patriarch Kirill.

This is how it looks from 2022: someone from that choir was declared an enemy of the people, and someone now supports war One of the most famous Russian songs about friendship and unity - the composition "Closing Circle" Chris Kelmi - turned 35 years old. Today it is difficult to believe that all Soviet rock stars that participated in the records of those years could gather on the same stage: some Russian propaganda now represents the enemies of the people, others appear on patriotic Z-concerts.

In Minsk, they began to consider the case of human rights activists of the "spring", who helped the repressed Belarusians. Photo Vitaly Pivovarchik / BelTA / AFP / Scanpix / Leta on January 5 in the court of the Leninsky district of Minsk began the consideration of the case of human rights activists "Vesna" - an organization that helped Belarusians detained and injured during the protests of 2020 .

The Dormition Cathedral and Feast Church of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, a historic Kyiv monastery also known as the Monastery of the Caves, have been repossessed by the state, following the expiration of a lease that gave the Ukrainian Orthodox Church temporary rights over the two cultural monuments. The Ukrainian Minister of Culture Alexander Tkachenko reported the transfer on Facebook.

Prince Harry has revealed that his older brother Prince William of Wales attacked him during a row over his wife Meghan Markle. The episode is included in the Duke of Sussex's autobiographical book Spare, which will be released on January 10. Excerpts from the memoirs were published by The Guardian, which received a copy of the book. The row between the princes took place in 2019 at Nottingham Cottage , where Harry and Meghan were living at the time.

For the first time, a group of Russian prisoners that fought in the war against Ukraine as part of the Wagner private military company has been granted amnesty , the mercenary group’s founder, Evgeny Prigozhin, said on Thursday. According to RIA Novosti, the group of now-freed prisoners contained about 20 people who served out six-month contracts. PMC Wagner has not released their names or the crimes they were convicted of.

Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, called for a two-day cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine during the Eastern Orthodox Christmas celebration on January 6–7, so that Orthodox believers could attend Christmas church services. In proposing the truce, the patriarch once again characterized the invasion as “infighting,” disparaging the Ukrainian identity and sovereignty. The Ukrainian President’s Office responded with sharp criticism of the patriarch’s proposal.