(TotalConservative.com) – A Russian-American dual citizen and journalist affiliated with Radio Free Europe/Radio LIberty, which is funded by the U.S. government, was convicted of allegations of spreading lies about the Russian military and slapped with a sentence of 6.5 years on Monday, July 21.
Alu Kurmasheva was convicted the previous Friday, which was the same day that Wall Street Journal writer Evan Gershkovich was found guilty of espionage. Gershkovich was slammed with a 16 year term. Without getting into the details, U.S. authorities have challenged the validity of the accusations against him, a step they haven’t made publicly in Kurmasheva’s case.
Kurmasheva, 47, worked as an editor for the Russian-language Tatar-Bashkir service. The charges against her alleged she spread negative propaganda about the Russian military. Her boss, CEO Stephen Capus called the trial “a mockery of justice.” He added that the proper outcome is her release and reunification with her family.
Upon being asked during a State Department briefing on July 16, agency representative Matthew Miller iterated that journalism shouldn’t be criminalized and that U.S. authorities were demanding her immediate release from the Russians. Miller said he had no news about the agency making a “wrongful detention determination” in her case.
Reporters Without Borders has been advocating for such a determination, which is required for the government to properly activate all its potential resources to secure her release.
Kurmasheva was arrested in Russia during travel in October 2023 and accused of failure to register as a foreign agent. She was later charged with spreading false information about the Russian military which effectively covers any reporting outside of the Kremlin’s preferred narratives when it comes to the war in Ukraine.
She traveled to Russia to reportedly care for her sick mother, according to statements made by her 15-year-old daughter.
Kurmasheva was listed as an editor on a book which details the stories of regular Ukrainians who oppose Russia’s invasion. Her employer was repeatedly fined for failing to register as a foreign agent and its operations outlawed in Russia last February.
The primary hope for the return of both journalists is through a negotiated prisoner exchange.
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