Sergei Sokolov is editor-in-chief of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta. The journalist has now been arrested and sentenced to a fine. He is said to have discredited the Russian army in a text.
Russian authorities have arrested journalist and editor-in-chief of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, Sergei Sokolov, for allegedly denigrating the army. At the same time, he was sentenced to a fine of the equivalent of 300 euros, the newspaper announced on its Telegram channel. The police arrested Sokolov that morning near his Moscow apartment and took him to court.
The Russian news agency Tass reports that Sokolov “posted material on the Novaya Gazeta Telegram channel” that showed “signs of verbal discrediting of the army’s actions.”
Reporters Without Borders criticizes arrest
The organization Reporters Without Borders wrote on the platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that the arrest was further evidence of “the violence of censorship in Russia.” The newspaper is known for its investigations, which sometimes target the Kremlin, government policies and top officials.
Sokolov has been editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta since September after his predecessor, Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov, was classified as a foreign agent by the Russian authorities.
Law prohibits spread of “false information”
Shortly after the start of the attack against Ukraine, the Russian parliament passed a law banning the denigration of the military or the spread of “false information” about the country’s actions in Ukraine. A little later, Novaya Gazeta announced that it would cease publication for the duration of the war. Other newspapers were banned.
The newspaper’s employees who have migrated abroad have founded a new project, Novaya Gazeta Europa, which has sharply criticized Russia’s war against Ukraine.