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Media Watchdog Warns EU About Russian Outlet Operating In Serbia
Reporters Without Borders has asked the European Union to hold Serbia accountable for hosting Russian state media network RT, which RSF calls "Vladimir Putin's factory of lies."
Reporters Without Borders, which goes by its French acronym RSF, says that the EU should take these steps because RT Balkan uses its office in Belgrade to "adapt the Kremlin's narratives" and broadcast propaganda throughout southeastern Europe.
RT and other Kremlin-controlled media have been under sanctions imposed by the EU since Russian launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. But in Serbia, which did not join the sanctions even though it is a candidate for EU membership, these Russian media outlets work without hindrance, RSF said.
Pavol Szalai, head of the RSF office for the EU and the Balkans, told RFE/RL in an interview on October 2 that RSF is calling on the EU and member states to address this problem in its negotiations with Serbia on EU membership.
"And we will, through our communication channels with the European Commission and the member states, raise this issue," Szalai said.
"The fact that a sovereign and proud country like Serbia hosts Putin's factory of lies and is used by Russia to spread Russian propaganda is not tolerable for Serbia, or for the European Union," the RSF official added.
The Paris-based organization launched an initiative called the Propaganda Monitor on September 30 to inform the public about the mechanisms behind propaganda and disinformation. It dedicated its first report to Russian propaganda spreading in the Balkans with a particular focus on RT.
RSF researchers looked into RT’s operation in Serbia and said that thanks to RT Balkan, the Kremlin's war propaganda is "blooming within the borders of the EU."
Russian narratives are adapted to the local audience in Serbia before being distributed throughout the region, RSF said.
Szalai stressed in the interview with RFE/RL that Serbia’s actions ran contrary to its wish to become an EU member state.
“Entering into the EU means respecting some rules, and these include aligning with EU's security and foreign policy,” Szalai told RFE/RL. “And now here the situation is clear. Serbia is not respecting this rule. And this is why we said that it should be held accountable by the EU institutions, by the member states in the negotiations.”
Serbia was awarded EU candidate status along with other hopefuls in 2012.
RSF said there are several reasons why RT chose Serbia as its Balkan office, including long-standing relations between Russia and Serbia and a common culture of Slavic heritage and Orthodox Christianity.
RT Balkan has "adapted the Kremlin's narrative to a highly receptive local audience, allowing it to spread more easily across the region," RSF said.
"Perhaps nowhere in the world were we more eagerly awaited than here," said RT editor in chief Margarita Simonyan in a news release issued when RT Balkan launched in November 2022.
The research done by RSF says that, while RT Balkan does not have a television channel, its website remains the main platform for video content.
RSF said that the editors and columnists of RT Balkan "act more like influencers than journalists" and they are frequent guests on other media outlets to ensure visibility.
"Presented as journalists or analysts associated with RT Balkan, they get a wide platform for legitimizing and spreading the Kremlin's propaganda," according to RSF.
RT Balkan promotes itself as an online broadcast service and multimedia website in the Serbian language whose goal is to provide an "alternative perspective on regional and world events."
Since its founding in Moscow in 2005, RT has developed a network of television channels, websites and social media accounts that publish content in English, Spanish, French, Arabic, German, and Russian.
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Says It Disrupted Russian Hacking Group
A hacking group tied to Russian intelligence has been disrupted, Microsoft and U.S. authorities said on October 3.
American officials say the group tried to break into the computer systems of former U.S. military and intelligence staff as well as NGOs, U.S. companies, and others.
A U.S. court unsealed documents authorizing Microsoft and the Department of Justice to seize more than 100 website domain names associated with the hacking group, known as the Callisto Group of Star Blizzard.
“This seizure is part of a coordinated response with our private sector partners to dismantle the infrastructure that cyberespionage actors use to attack U.S. and international targets,” said U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey for the Northern District of California.
The group targeted individuals with e-mails that appeared to come from a trusted source, a tactic known as spear phishing, the U.S. Justice Department said in a news release. Once links inside these e-mails were opened, the hackers would attempt to access the victims’ internal systems as a way of stealing information and disrupting their activities.
Star Blizzard's actions were persistent and sophisticated, according to Microsoft, and the group often did detailed research on its targets before launching an attack. Star Blizzard also went after civil society groups, U.S. companies, American military contractors, and the Department of Energy, which oversees many nuclear programs, the company said.
Authorities haven't provided details about Star Blizzard's effectiveness but said they expect Russia to keep deploying hacking and cyberattacks against Washington and its allies, and the United States pledged to continue its vigilance.
"With the continued support of our private sector partners, we will be relentless in exposing Russian actors and cybercriminals and depriving them of the tools of their illicit trade,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in the Justice Department statement.
U.S. authorities charged two Russian men last year in connection with Star Blizzard's past actions. Both are believed to be in Russia.
Along with American targets, Star Blizzard went after people and groups throughout Europe and in other NATO countries, the Justice Department said. Many had supported Ukraine following Russia's invasion.
With reporting by AP
German Envoy To Hungary Summoned Over 'Trustworthiness' Comments
The Hungarian Foreign Ministry summoned the German ambassador on October 3 over comments she made about the Hungarian government and relations between Budapest and Berlin.
Ambassador Julia Gross reportedly told a diplomatic event to mark German Unity Day in Budapest that Hungary "is on a path that is leading it away from its friends" and the trust that Hungary has earned is eroding.
There has been a "whole series of incidents, theories, measures, and provocations that...raise doubts about Hungary's trustworthiness," she was quoted as saying.
Her comments angered the Hungarian government, prompting Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto to summon her, saying the remarks were "totally unacceptable."
"She gravely interfered in Hungary's internal affairs in a way that violated the sovereignty of our country," he said on Facebook.
"We expect respect from ambassadors serving in our country in all cases, and therefore the ambassador's speech is totally unacceptable," he added.
In her comments on October 3, Gross also denounced Prime Minister Viktor Orban's self-described peace mission in July over Russia's war in Ukraine, which involved visits to Ukraine, Russia, China, and the United States.
Orban made the tour immediately after Hungary took over the European Union's rotating presidency on July 1, enraging fellow EU and NATO leaders by meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow during his trip.
Gross also called out the Hungarian government for holding up the NATO membership bids of Finland and Sweden, calling the move a "farce" and criticized the Hungarian government's pro-Russian policy at length.
"I assume that for you -- Hungarian voters, regardless of your political persuasion -- this increasingly leads to the question: How does this serve my interests and how does it make my life better as a Hungarian?" she was quoted as saying.
The diplomatic spat came after Orban's political director commented on a podcast about how Hungary would have handled an invasion by Russian forces.
Political director Balazs Orban said that he thinks the lesson from the 1956 revolution, which was put down by the Soviet Union, is that it is not advisable to resist in the event of a Russian military attack.
"Just starting from '56, we probably wouldn't have done what President [Volodymyr] Zelenskiy did two and a half years ago because it's irresponsible, because it seems that he took his country into a war of defense,” Balazs Orban said on September 26 on the Mandiner podcast.
Balazs Orban later apologized and said that he would fight with a gun in his hand if Russia attacked Hungary. Viktor Orban initially stood up for his political director but later said he had made a mistake.
Gross and French Ambassador Jonathan Lacote reportedly delivered a joint protest over Balazs Orban's comments to the Hungarian government.
RFE/RL reported that the protest advised that if Hungary, as a NATO member state, indeed took such a stance on the issue of common defense, it is contrary to the spirit of the military alliance and offensive to the other alliance members.
With reporting by AFP and Reuters
Israel Presses Ahead With Lebanon Incursion After Strikes On Beirut Kill 9
Israel's incursion into south Lebanon continued on October 3 hours after a strike on an apartment building in downtown Beirut killed 9 people while a separate action in the West Bank eliminated a Palestinian militant who was once involved in the lynchings of Israeli reservists.
The Israeli Army also urged the immediate evacuation of more than 20 towns in south Lebanon including the provincial capital, Nabatieh, a move that apparently indicates the Israeli operation against Hezbollah is about to be expanded.
Hezbollah is both an armed group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, although the European Union has only blacklisted its armed wing.
The Lebanese Health Ministry said the strike on Beirut killed 9 people, in what was the first attack on the center of the Lebanese capital since 2006 as Iran's military warned it would launch broader strikes if the Jewish state responds to its October 1 missile attack.
Israel said its air strike on Beirut was a precise operation, while a security source said the target was an apartment building in the capital's central district of Bachoura near the Lebanese parliament.
A Hezbollah-linked civil defense group said seven of its members, including two medics, had been killed in the Beirut attack.
A separate missile attack on a building in the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil killed 15 Hezbollah members, while another strike targeted the southern suburb of Dahiyeh, where Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed last week, according to Lebanese security officials.
Hamas media and medics, meanwhile, said Israel has killed Abdel-Aziz Salha, a West Bank militant from the U.S. and EU terrorist-designated group who had once been jailed for life for taking part in the lynching of two Israeli reservists in Ramallah in 2000 but was later deported to Gaza in a prisoner swap.
Also on October 3, Israel's military announced that it had "eliminated" Rawhi Mushtaha, the head of the Hamas government in Gaza, along with senior security officials Sameh al-Siraj and Sami Oudeh in strikes three months ago.
Earlier, an Israeli strike on Syria's capital, Damascus, killed four people, including Hassan Jaafar al-Qasir, Nasrallah's son-in-law, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor.
The latest Israeli strikes came a day after Israel reported that eight of its soldiers were killed during its incursion in south Lebanon -- the deadliest day for the Israeli military since launching the cross-border raid this week.
The Lebanese Army reported on October 3 that two of its soldiers were killed over the past 24 hours by Israeli fire, while Health Minister Firass Abiad said that a total of 1,974 people have been killed, including 127 children, and 9,384 wounded since the start of the Israeli attacks on Lebanon over the past year.
Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned the German and Austrian ambassadors on October 3 after their governments rebuked Tehran over its missile attack on Israel, according to Iranian state news agency IRNA.
The move came in response to "unacceptable measures" by Germany and Austria in summoning Iran's envoys over the October 1 attack.
Tehran launched a massive ballistic-missile attack on Israel on October 1, its largest so far, in retaliation for the campaign started by the Jewish state in southern Lebanon against Iran-backed Hezbollah, prompting warnings of countermeasures from Israel and its main ally, the United States.
Israeli air defenses intercepted most of the estimated 180 missiles that were fired, though some landed in central and southern Israel.
On October 2, Iran's military chief, Major General Mohammad Bagheri said the missile attack launched by Tehran had been limited to military targets, but claimed that in case of an Israeli response, larger Iranian strikes would follow.
"If the Zionist regime is not controlled and takes action against Iran, we will target all of its infrastructure," he said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi also said in a message on X that the attack targeted "solely military and security sites" involved in what he said was the Israeli "genocide in Gaza and Lebanon" and was conducted by Iran in "self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter."
Bagheri's statement came after Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian also warned Israel against retaliating and promised a strong response.
"We are not looking for war. It is Israel that forces us to react," Pezeshkian said after arriving in Qatar for a summit with Asian countries.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he would strike back at Iran following the October 1 missile attack as fears grow of a full-blown regional war, while Israel's UN ambassador, Danny Danon, told CNN that the response to the Iranian attack will be "very strong, painful," and will come "soon.”
There has been speculation that Israeli might attack sites related to Tehran’s nuclear program, but U.S. President Joe Biden said he would not support that.
Biden's comments came after he and fellow Group of Seven (G7) leaders spoke by phone on October 2 to discuss coordinating new sanctions against Iran.
The G7 leaders "unequivocally condemned Iran's attack against Israel" and Biden reiterated the United States' "full solidarity and support to Israel and its people," a White House statement said.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei on October 3 thrashed the G7 statement, saying that the West's condemnation of its attack on Israel was "biased and irresponsible."
- By dpa
Iran Summons German Ambassador Over Remarks About Attack On Israel
Iran summoned the German ambassador on October 3 over differences concerning the situation in the Middle East, the Iranian state news agency IRNA reported. Alongside German Ambassador Markus Potzel, the head of Austria's diplomatic mission in Tehran was summoned separately to the Foreign Ministry, IRNA said. The step comes after Germany summoned the Iranian ambassador to the Foreign Ministry in Berlin on October 2 in response to Iran's attack on Israel. The ambassador was out of town so the charge d'affaires of the embassy was made aware that the German government condemned the attack in the strongest possible terms.
- By RFE/RL
Verdict Expected Next Week For 72-Year-Old U.S. Man Facing 'Mercenary' Charge In Russia
A Moscow court will hand down its verdict and sentence on October 7 in the case of Stephen Hubbard, a 72-year-old U.S. citizen, who is accused of fighting against Russian forces in Ukraine.
Moscow City Court Judge Aleksandra Kovalevskaya announced the date after the October 3 session behind closed doors ended.
Hubbard, who has reportedly pleaded guilty to the charge and could face up to 15 years in prison, appeared in court walking slowly, wearing a black hat and beige jacket, according to an AFP journalist.
The trial’s closed nature follows a prosecution request, which the defense did not contest. U.S. Embassy officials and journalists were asked to leave the proceedings.
Russian prosecutors allege that Hubbard fought for Ukraine’s territorial defense in Izyum, signing a contract for $1,000 per month. He was detained by Russian forces on April 2, 2022.
The Russian state news agency RIA reported earlier this week that Hubbard pleaded guilty to the charges, which Hubbard's family has cast doubt on.
They say he was pro-Russian and would not have taken up arms against the country.
His sister confirmed he had lived in Ukraine since 2014. The U.S. Embassy in Moscow has not commented on the case due to "privacy concerns."
Hubbard’s trial has attracted attention due to worries over the targeting of U.S. citizens in Russia, with many questioning the validity of the charges.
His family, particularly his sister Patricia Fox, has expressed doubts about the accusations, stating that Hubbard had long been sympathetic to Russia and had moved to Ukraine in 2014.
Fox revealed that Hubbard had lived in the eastern Ukrainian town of Izyum after splitting with his Ukrainian girlfriend and was there when the war broke out. Fox also pointed to a video released in May 2022, in which Hubbard was seen commenting on the war.
In the video, he claimed to have witnessed Ukrainian forces shelling Izyum for “propaganda purposes,” and expressed understanding for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine.
It remains unclear under what circumstances the video was made, raising questions about whether Hubbard was coerced into making the statements.
Russian authorities have not provided details on Hubbard’s arrest or how he ended up in Moscow, and his previous pretrial restrictions remain undisclosed.
Hubbard’s trial follows a pattern of U.S. citizens being detained in Russia on what many see as politically motivated charges.
Moscow has been accused of using these arrests to leverage prisoner swaps with the United States and other Western countries.
At least 10 U.S. citizens, including Hubbard, remain behind bars in Russia after a prisoner swap on August 1 involving 16 people that Moscow agreed to free in exchange for eight Russians convicted of crimes and serving prison terms in the United States and Europe.
U.S. citizens, including RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, were released as part of the prisoner exchange.
The outcome of Hubbard’s trial will likely be closely watched by both the United States and Russia as the geopolitical tensions between the two countries continue to escalate.
With reporting by RIA Novosti, AFP, TASS and Reuters
Moldova Says It Has Uncovered A Russian-Funded Voter-Rigging Plot
Pro-Kremlin forces are meddling in Moldova's upcoming presidential election by paying off tens of thousands of voters in a sweeping plot to derail Chisinau's bid for closer ties with the European Union, the country's police and Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office said.
During a briefing on October 3, the head of the General Police Inspectorate, Viorel Cernauteanu, and the head of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, Veronica Dragalin, said that in September alone more than $15 million from Russian banks were directed to the accounts of more than 130,000 Moldovan citizens.
Cernauteanu said police had raided 25 locations as part of the investigation.
The plot was allegedly hatched by Ihan Shor, a Russian-backed fugitive oligarch implicated in a $1 billion bank fraud and other illicit schemes who organized months of protests in Chisinau against the pro-Western government of President Maia Sandu.
The money was funneled into the country by people affiliated with Shor, Cernauteanu said.
"We are finding an unprecedented phenomenon for the Republic of Moldova -- of financing and corruption, with a view to disrupting the electoral process," Cernauteanu said, adding that the country is the target of "direct attacks coming from the Russian Federation."
Sandu has portrayed the October 20 contest as a test of her pro-European policies. It will be held alongside a referendum asking voters whether Moldova should be able to join the European Union. Sandu, who is seeking a second term, has long accused Russia of attempting to overthrow her government through various means, a charge Moscow denies.
The United States has also warned of alleged Russian plans to use disinformation to interfere in the voting to derail Moldova’s significant progress on reforms.
Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi expressed confidence in early September that Moldovan authorities and society can ensure smooth and democratic elections despite fears of Russian meddling.
“We are working with our electorate, campaigning, explaining, the risks and the threats that Moldova faces in a democratic environment, in a competitive democratic space, which unfortunately the pro-Russian candidates would not be able to enjoy in Russia,” Popsoi told RFE/RL.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
Russian Father of 14 From Tatarstan Killed In Ukraine War
A father of more than a dozen children from Russia's Tatarstan region who volunteered for service has been killed in the war in Ukraine. According to local Russian media, Avraam Melekh, 44, was buried in the city of Yelabuga on October 2. Melekh leaves behind 14 children, 11 of whom are under the age of 18. Previously known as Vladimir Golub, Melekh had divorced his first wife in February 2024 and was living with his new family and three young children in a rented apartment. His youngest child is 9 months old, while his oldest is 22. Tatarstan offers one of Russia’s highest financial incentives for contract soldiers, with a one-time payment of 2 million rubles ($21,000). At least 2,724 people from Tatarstan have been killed in Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion of its western neighbor in 2022. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Idel.Realities, click here.
Authorities Crack Down On Pakistani Rights Group Ahead Of People's Assembly
The Pashtun Tahafuz (Protection) Movement (PTM) has reported a series of police raids and arrests targeting its leaders and members across Pakistan ahead of a curial jirga (people's assembly) on October 1 in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Sherzadeh Maseed, a PTM leader in the region’s South Waziristan district, said police detained several key activists, including Alamzeb Mahsud, known for his work on enforced disappearances. PTM leaders were beaten and arrested in other similar raids in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In the southern seaport city of Karachi, PTM leader Nurullah Tareen said eight members were arrested on terrorism charges following a September 27 meeting to organize the curial jirga. On October 2 and 3, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police again raided the PTM’s jirga site near Peshawar, the provincial capital. It allegedly burned tents and used tear gas. PTM leaders accuse the government of trying to disrupt the event. Provincial authorities said the action against the PTM was ordered by the federal government. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal, click here.
EU Sues Hungary Over Russian-Style Sovereignty-Defense Law
The European Commission on October 3 said it was suing Hungary at the European Court of Justice over the so-called Defense of Sovereignty, a piece of legislation that critics say mirrors a similar Russian move that aims to silence government opponents.
The commission -- the European Union's executive arm -- said the law, under which a so-called Sovereignty Protection Office was established with the purported aim of defending Hungary's sovereignty against foreign influence, is in breach of EU legislation.
After Hungary's parliament, controlled by nationalist right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Fidesz party, easily passed the bill, the commission in February opened an infringement procedure, saying it considered the legislation to violate the bloc's democratic values and fundamental rights.
"After carefully assessing the reply of the Hungarian authorities, the commission maintains that most of the grievances identified have still not been addressed," it said in a statement.
Under Orban, who has been in power since 2010 and has maintained a cozy relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, EU and NATO member Hungary has strengthened its ties with Russia and China while stifling media freedom and the rule of law, prompting Brussels to impose punitive measures on Budapest.
Hungary has repeatedly claimed that Brussels and Washington are funding domestic opposition groups in order to influence Hungarian voters.
The law was criticized by Western governments, rights groups, and media watchdogs as being modelled on Russia's "foreign agents" legislation used by the Kremlin over the past decade to stifle domestic criticism and persecute political opponents.
In November, Dunja Mijatovic, the Council of Europe's commissioner for human rights, urged Budapest to scrap the bill, saying it "poses a significant risk to human rights and should be abandoned."
In December, the Committee to Protect Journalists urged Hungary's president to refuse to sign the bill, saying in a statement that it "bears the hallmarks of a Russian-style foreign agent law and has no place in an EU member state."
In June, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on June 27 said Washington was "deeply concerned" by the Sovereignty Protection Office's "draconian actions" and that the law threatened the "human rights and fundamental freedoms" of Hungary's own citizens.
The European Court has the power to order a member country to comply with EU laws and impose penalties.
- By Current Time
Putin Signs Law Allowing Criminal Defendants To Join Military
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a controversial new law suspending criminal proceedings against individuals who are called up for military service or sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense to serve in the armed forces.
The move allows defendants, even those already on trial or appealing conviction, to avoid prosecution by joining the military.
The law represents another step in Russia's attempts to increase its military strength without resorting to the politically sensitive option of mass mobilization.
By targeting prisoners and defendants, the Kremlin can continue to recruit soldiers while minimizing public dissent.
The strategy, however, has raised significant human rights concerns, with reports of coerced enlistment, harsh prison conditions aimed at motivating inmates to join the war, and increased pressure on individuals awaiting trial.
The process has also come under fire amid a crime wave involving convicts who return from the front lines after fulfilling their service requirements.
Under the new law, criminal defendants will now have the option to enlist in the military at various stages of their legal proceedings.
This includes when their case has been sent to court or even during the trial process. The law also applies to those whose sentences have not yet been finalized, meaning individuals who have appealed their convictions could still avoid jail time by enlisting.
Initially spearheaded by the Wagner mercenary group, the convict-recruitment drive has since been taken over by the Defense Ministry.
According to a report by the IStories website, the Russian government plans to recruit around 24,000 defendants to serve in the war in Ukraine.
The publication quoted two lawyers and a source within the Defense Ministry as saying that pretrial detention centers and military personnel had already begun preparing for such recruitment even before the law was officially signed.
These preparations reportedly involved gathering information on which defendants were fit for military service and willing to sign contracts.
The source from the Defense Ministry estimated that roughly 40 percent of the approximately 60,000 defendants currently in pretrial detention were likely to be conscripted.
Lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov told IStories that the recruitment drive was part of an effort to avoid a new wave of "partial mobilizations," a move that could spark public backlash.
In September 2022, Putin's announcement of such a mobilization prompted tens of thousands of Russian men to flee the country, fearing they would be sent to the front lines.
Olga Romanova, head of the Russian human rights group Russia Behind Bars, confirmed to Current Time that recruitment from pretrial detention centers began long before Putin signed the law.
"As of January 1, 2024, 53 prisons have been shut down because the majority of inmates were recruited for the war," Romanova explained.
She added that over 20 prisons had been repurposed to house Ukrainian prisoners of war and were now under Defense Ministry control.
Romanova expressed concern over the worsening conditions in prisons and detention centers, saying that the harsh environment is being used as a tool to pressure inmates, suspects, and defendants into signing military contracts.
"Investigators are now using threats to impose the harshest punishments on suspects before their trials even begin, pushing them toward military service as a way out," Romanova said.
She also noted that law enforcement had started to detain individuals on minor charges, such as shoplifting or verbal insults, with the apparent goal of funneling them into military recruitment.
Romanova shared cases where detainees were threatened with lengthy prison sentences or harsh treatment unless they agreed to enlist.
Earlier this week, Putin signed a decree for the regular conscription of males between the ages of 18 and 30 for one year of mandatory military service.
The conscription period began on October 1 and will continue until December 31, during which an estimated 133,000 men are expected to join the Russian military.
While Putin initially assured the public that only contract soldiers would be deployed to fight in Ukraine, reports suggest that conscripts are often coerced into signing contracts shortly after their induction that see them sent to the front line.
4 Russian Journalists On Trial Over Links To Navalny
The trial of four Russian journalists associated with the late opposition leader Aleksei Navalny -- including two who have worked for international news agencies -- has begun behind closed doors in a court in Moscow.
Antonina Favorskaya, Sergei Karelin, Konstantin Gabov, and Artyom Kriger are accused of participating in extremist activities for allegedly contributing to YouTube channels affiliated with Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK).
Gabov and Karelin are freelance journalists who have worked for several news organizations, including, respectively, Reuters and the Associated Press.
Favorskaya and Kriger both work for the independent news outlet SOTAVision, which has been designated a "foreign agent" in Russia.
The journalists each face up to six years in prison if convicted.
The FBK and related organizations were labeled "extremist" by the Russian authorities in 2021, making any association with them a criminal offense.
Dozens of journalists are currently in detention in Russia on similar grounds, according to human rights groups.
The court closed the proceedings to the public citing a warning from Russia's Center for Combating Extremism alleging that the FBK may try to disrupt the trial, which is part of a broader crackdown on Navalny's former associates.
"This is just some kind of archaism. This is how they do it in totalitarian regimes," the independent news outlet Mediazona quoted Kriger as telling the judge before the public was cleared from the court room.
Navalny, who died in prison in February under controversial circumstances, was serving a 19-year sentence on charges widely seen as politically motivated.
His death has sparked further scrutiny and allegations of foul play.
With reporting by Reuters and Mediazona
New NATO Chief In Kyiv As Romania Delivers Patriot System To Ukraine
A Patriot missile-defense system donated by NATO member Romania has arrived in Ukraine, the two neighbors announced on October 3, as the military alliance's secretary-general, Mark Rutte, made a surprise visit to Kyiv just two days after taking office.
Russian drones and missiles rained down on Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions in the early hours of October 3, and as Rutte met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy later in the day, air-raid sirens twice blared throughout the capital, underscoring the situation faced by residents of the capital and other regions of the country.
"I thank every country that helps us with air defense. A special thanks to Romania for the 'Patriot' systems. Together, we can achieve even greater efficiency -- we can put an end to Russian terror by jointly taking down 'Shaheds' and missiles," Zelenskiy said on X, while Romania's Defense Ministry confirmed to RFE/RL that the Patriot system had been delivered.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
Speaking after his meeting with Zelenskiy, Rutte vowed to help build and maintain Western support for Ukraine as it battles to repel Russia's full-scale invasion, launched by the Kremlin in February 2022.
"Ukraine is closer to NATO than ever before," he said, noting recent steps taken by the alliance that are helping to "build a bridge to NATO membership."
Highlighting the risk to NATO members such as Romania that border on Ukraine, Russian drones again struck the critically important Ukrainian port of Izmayil just across the Danube, prompting Bucharest to scramble F-16 fighter jets to monitor the situation late on October 2.
"We confirm that the Patriot system has arrived in Ukraine," Constantin Spinu, a spokesman for Romania's Defense Ministry, told RFE/RL on October 3, after the government in Bucharest last month passed a bill needed for the transfer of the system to Kyiv.
Under the bill, Romania grants Ukraine the right of free use of the system.
Kyiv has been desperately urging its Western allies to supply more modern weapons and air-defense systems that would help it on the one hand to protect its skies and on the other hand allow it to strike military targets deeper inside Russia to prevent Moscow's forces from launching attacks on Ukraine from a safe distance.
Early on October 3, Ukrainian air defenses shot down 78 Russian drones over 15 regions -- Kyiv, Cherkasy, Vinnytsya, Khmelnytskiy, Kirovohrad, Zhytomyr, Poltava, Chernihiv, Kherson, Odesa, Kharkiv, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Rivne, and Ivano-Frankivsk -- the air force reported.
The head of the Ukrainian capital's military administration said on Telegram that 15 drones were downed over Kyiv. Drone debris fell on the capital's Desnyanskiy district without causing injuries or damage during the attack, which lasted for more than five hours, Serhiy Popko said.
Separately, a source in Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) told RFE/RL that Ukrainian drones overnight attacked the Borisoglebsk military airfield in Russia's Voronezh region. The airfield, some 240 kilometers from the border, has been used by Russia to launch missile attacks on Ukraine.
The source, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said that satellite monitoring showed that four fires were burning on the airfield's perimeter.
Russia's Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said 113 Ukrainian drones were shot down overnight over the Belgorod, Voronezh, Kursk, and Bryansk regions. The highest number of drones, 73, were intercepted over Belgorod, the ministry said.
Ukraine, whose civilian and energy infrastructure has been battered by relentless Russian drone and missile strikes since the start of Moscow's unprovoked invasion in February 2022, has in turn begun to launch its own drone strikes on military facilities deeper inside Russia.
Russian Beaten By Kadyrov's Son While In Custody Charged With Treason
Nikita Zhuravel, a Russian political prisoner who was beaten by the teenage son of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov while in pretrial detention, has been charged with high treason.
The Russian Prosecutor-General's Office announced on October 3 that Zhuravel's case has been forwarded to the Volgograd regional court.
The new charge stems from allegations that in March 2023, Zhuravel, 20, sent a video to a representative of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) that reportedly contained footage of military equipment being transported by train, images of military aircraft, and details of a service vehicle's movements.
Under Russian law, treason can result in a life sentence.
Zhuravel is already serving a 3 1/2-year prison sentence handed down by a Chechen court in February after being convicted of hooliganism for publicly burning a Koran in his hometown of Volgograd.
He was also sentenced to 300 hours of community service for insulting religious believers.
During the trial, Zhuravel apologized to the Muslim community, acknowledging his actions but claiming he had no intention to offend anyone.
The case drew widespread attention when it was revealed that while Zhuravel was in custody in Chechnya, he was attacked by Adam Kadyrov, the 15-year-old son of Ramzan Kadyrov.
A video of the assault in a jail was shared on social media by the elder Kadyrov, sparking public outrage.
Despite this, law enforcement in Chechnya declined to pursue a criminal investigation, citing a lack of evidence.
Kadyrov defended his son's actions, publicly stating that it would have been better if his son had killed Zhuravel.
Adam Kadyrov was later awarded the title of “Hero of the Republic of Chechnya,” the highest honor in the region, and received further accolades from several Russian regions.
The human rights group Memorial has recognized Zhuravel as a political prisoner, raising doubts about the Koran-burning accusations and criticizing his transfer from Volgograd to mostly Muslim-populated Chechnya for investigation and trial.
The organization has also condemned the violence Zhuravel endured in detention as a serious legal violation.
Georgian Speaker Signs Law Curbing LGBT Rights After President Refuses To
Georgian parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili on October 3 signed into law a bill that rights groups, the opposition, and the international community say drastically curbs the rights of the country's LGBT community.
Papuashvili, of the ruling Georgian Dream party and a co-sponsor of the bill, endorsed the bill after President Salome Zurabishvili on October 2 refused to sign it and returned it to parliament, in accordance to the provisions of the Georgian Constitution.
The so-called "family values" bill was pushed through parliament by Georgian Dream on September 17 in an 84-0 vote, which was boycotted by the opposition while rallies were being held by protesters outside the parliament building.
While legal under the constitution, Papuashvili's move highlights the dramatically polarized political landscape in the South Caucasus country, with Georgian Dream at odds with both Zurabishvili and the political opposition, which has been boycotting parliament for months ahead of elections scheduled next month.
After Papuashivili's endorsement, the law is to be published in Georgia's Legislative Gazette and will come into force on the 60th day after its publication.
The package of legal changes, whose complete title is On Family Values And Protection Of Minors, brings changes to 18 current laws, including legislation on free speech and expression as well as broadcasting.
The measures provide for the banning of gatherings that promote the right of a person to identify as a gender other than "his or her biological sex" and they also prohibit gatherings advocating for same-sex orientation or relationships.
As he signed the bill, Papuashvili took a swipe at both Zurabishvili and the opposition for refusing to back it.
"It is symbolic that the leader of the devalued opposition who has become a popular president refuses to sign the law that protects what's most valuable for a person -- family and children," Papuashvili said.
Papuashvili, whose party remains the most popular, according to opinion polls ahead of crucial October 26 elections, also dismissed in advance the expected Western criticism of his move.
"I understand very well that the signing of this law will cause criticism from some foreign partners, but we Georgians have never been afraid of others' judgment when our faith, common sense, and loyalty to the country required us to do so and when we saw that the currents of civilization were going in the wrong direction," he said.
The opposition has boycotted parliamentary sessions since May, when Georgian Dream lawmakers approved a "foreign influence" bill, which Western governments and many Georgians liken to Russia's "foreign agent" law used by the Kremlin to clamp down on dissent with broad discretion.
The law requires organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as "agents of foreign influence."
Zurabishvili vetoed that bill, but the ruling party overrode her opposition and promulgated it despite months of public protests and warnings from the United States and the European Union that the measure was eroding Georgia's democracy and its path to integration into Western institutions.
In response, Washington on September 16 introduced sanctions on more than 60 Georgians, including two members of the government, who it said had "undermined" democracy and human rights in the country, prompting Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze to warn that Tbilisi might revise its ties with the United States.
The European Union, meanwhile, reacted to the bill by pausing EU accession negotiations.
Georgian Dream, founded by Russian-friendly Georgian tycoon and ex-Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, who is the party's top candidate for the upcoming elections, has insisted it remains committed to joining Western institutions.
Georgia's civil society has for years sought to move the country away from the influence of Russia, which still maintains thousands of troops in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, two breakaway Georgian regions that Moscow recognized as independent states following a five-day war with Tbilisi in 2008.
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Says Biggest Election Influence Threats Come From Russia, Iran, China
The United States expects Russia, Iran, and China to continue their attempts to influence the November 5 elections by using artificial intelligence to disseminate fake information, according to a report released on October 2 by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The department considers the three countries the most pressing foreign threats to U.S. critical infrastructure and expects them to remain so.
The Justice Department last week provided examples of how Russia was behind a fake San Francisco television channel that spread lies about Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic party's nominee for president.
The fictitious station used actors to create a fake broadcast about Harris's involvement in a hit-and-run incident that never occurred. The fake broadcast was viewed by millions on X and TikTok before the FBI and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence told reporters the Russian "influence actors" were behind it.
These "influence actors" have also attempted to stoke discord by amplifying stories about migrants entering the United States and have used generative artificial intelligence (AI) to create fake websites that appeared to be authentic U.S.-based media outlets, the DHS report said.
"Nation-states, criminal hacktivists, and financially motivated criminals will likely hone their techniques to disrupt U.S. services or to conduct espionage focused on gaining access to U.S. networks and critical infrastructure entities," the DHS said in its annual homeland threat assessment.
The DHS assessment anticipates Russia, Iran, and China "will use a blend of subversive, undeclared, criminal, and coercive tactics to seek new opportunities to undermine confidence in U.S. democratic institutions and domestic social cohesion."
The report said Iran has become "increasingly aggressive in its foreign influence efforts," citing Iranian actors who posed as activists online to encourage protests over the conflict in Gaza.
Polls indicate the presidential election between Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump will be so close that the result could further inflame partisan tensions and offer opportunities for foreign adversaries to try to disrupt the democratic process.
Domestic violent extremists pose another serious threat, according to the report. DHS said it expects domestic extremists to attempt violent actions "with the intent of instilling fear among voters, candidates, and election workers, as well as disrupting election processes."
With reporting by Reuters
- By RFE/RL
Russia Launches Criminal Case Against Opposition Yabloko Party Lawmaker
Russia has opened a criminal case against opposition politician Lev Shlosberg, one of the few Kremlin critics publicly opposed to the Ukraine campaign still at large in the country.
Shlosberg, deputy leader of the Yabloko party, said officers on October 2 searched his apartment and the apartment of his father in the northwestern city of Pskov. His father was interrogated but released.
Russia's Investigative Committee has accused Shlosberg of failing to disclose his status as a "foreign agent" in public statements -- a criminal offense punishable by up to two years in prison.
Moscow has waged a relentless crackdown on independent politicians and dissent since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It has used the foreign agents law to silence those who oppose the government and the war.
Anybody designated a foreign agent must attach a lengthy disclaimer to all public statements, including social media posts. They are also required to submit financial reports to Russian authorities.
Shlosberg, 61, is accused of "repeatedly publicly distributed materials without indicating they were created or spread by a foreign agent." He has denied breaking the law.
"I do not consider myself guilty of committing the crime of which I have been accused," he said on Telegram.
In social media posts and broadcasts on YouTube, Shlosberg has repeatedly said the conflict is a "tragedy," lamented the loss of life, and called for peace.
He has also expressed support for political prisoners jailed inside Russia.
Shlosberg is a rare example of a figure who opposes the conflict in Ukraine and the government but has stayed in the country.
He has already been fined in the past for violating the foreign agents law and for allegedly "discrediting" the Russian Army.
Yabloko founder and former longtime party leader Grigory Yavlinsky declared his support for Shlosberg on October 2. "I wish him freedom and strength," he said on Telegram.
With reporting by AFP and dpa
Croatia Backs Out Of NATO Ukraine Mission Over National Security Concerns
The president of Croatia has refused to approve the participation of Croatian soldiers in NATO's mission to support Ukraine, citing concerns about the conflict spreading toward Croatia and his desire to ensure the safety of the Balkan country.
The leaders of NATO member states agreed on a support package for Ukraine during a summit in July. Croatian President Zoran Milanovic initially gave his consent to the package, which will include establishing the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) to coordinate the provision of military equipment and training for Ukraine by its allies and partners.
However, on October 1, Milanovic refused to approve it.
NATO declined to comment on Milanovic's decision, telling RFE/RL that questions about Croatia's contributions should be directed to Croatian authorities.
NATO officials, however, reiterated that newly appointed Secretary-General Mark Rutte had confirmed the alliance's unwavering commitment to supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.
The NATO package for Ukraine includes the establishment of the NSATU in Germany with logistics hubs across allied territories to facilitate the provision of equipment, training, and long-term financial support.
The final declaration of the NATO summit that its aim was to "place security assistance to Ukraine on an enduring footing, ensuring enhanced, predictable, and coherent support." It will "support Ukraine’s self-defense in line with the UN Charter" and will not make NATO a party to the conflict.
The declaration also outlined an irreversible path toward NATO membership for Ukraine.
Milanovic said Croatia cannot significantly influence or stop the war in Ukraine and involving Croatian forces could endanger the country's security and would not be in Croatia's national interest.
Milanovic, a former prime minister of Croatia who has been president since 2020, has previously expressed similar views, opposing military training for Ukrainian soldiers in Croatia. He also has been critical of Western sanctions on Russia.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic sharply criticized Milanovic's decision, describing it as "manipulation" that undermines Croatia's international standing.
Plenkovic rejected Milanovic's argument that the decision would protect Croatia from involvement in the conflict, asserting that the refusal merely prevented the deployment of a few Croatian officers to a command in Wiesbaden, Germany.
Croatia is a member of NATO since 2009.
RFE/RL Reveals 20,000+ From Russia's Volga Regions Have Died In Ukraine
More than 20,000 soldiers from Russia's Povolzhye -- territories comprising several regions around the Volga River -- have died in Ukraine since the start of Moscow's full-scale invasion of its neighbor, according to calculations from RFE/RL's Idel.Realities, another sign of the deep impact the Kremlin's war in Ukraine is having on more distant regions of Russia.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
Data from Idel.Realities, a regional news outlet of RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service, show Bashkortostan has the highest death toll at just over 3,000, followed by Tatarstan with 2,724 and Perm Krai with 2,296.
The fewest losses among the 14 regions of Povolzhye were reported in Penza (461) and Mordovia (307).
The data are calculated using reports from relatives of the deceased and official statements.
Authorities in the regions have actively supported the war by offering financial incentives to encourage enlistment.
In addition to soldiers called up through mobilizations, many from the region who joined the war included prison inmates and private military mercenaries, as well as "kontraktniki"-- men who voluntarily sign contracts to fight, induced by extraordinarily high wages and veterans benefits, including for widows and survivors.
The Russian government has been notoriously tightlipped about its war losses since it launched the invasion in February 2022. Its last official figure came in September that year, with 5,937 Russian soldiers killed. At the time, the Ukrainian side was reporting Russian losses at nearly 10 times that figure.
That has made it difficult for reporters, analysts, and outside observers to gauge the full impact of the war on specific populations.
The tally, along with data published by RFE/RL last week, is the latest indication of how the burden of the Kremlin's war on Ukraine is disproportionately falling on more distant regions of Russia, farther away from the wealthy population centers of Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Mediazona and the BBC Russian Service have confirmed the names of 71,057 Russian soldiers killed as of last month, with Bashkortostan and Tatarstan ranking first and fourth in losses nationwide.
Overall, Russian casualties in the Ukraine war now exceed those from all of the post-World War II conflicts that have involved the Soviet Union and Russia since the fall of the Iron Curtain.
Ukraine Withdraws From Vuhledar As Russia Resumes Strikes On Danube Port
The Ukrainian military has confirmed that it is pulling out of the strategic city of Vuhledar in the east as Moscow continues its grinding offensive, while Ukraine's critically important Danube port of Izmayil was again targeted by waves of Russian drone strikes that raised the alarm in neighboring NATO member Romania.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
"The higher command has given permission for the withdrawal of units from Vuhledar in order to preserve personnel and combat equipment, and take position for further actions," Ukraine's Khortytsia ground forces formation, which commands eastern regions including Donetsk, said in a message on Telegram.
Russian forces used repeated attacks on the flanks of the city to exhaust the Ukrainian defenses, threatening to surround the hilltop city, the command said.
Moscow's troops, overwhelmingly superior in numbers and equipment, have been slowly advancing in eastern Ukraine despite huge losses, as Ukraine has been desperately appealing to its Western allies to provide it with more advanced weapons and give it permission to strike military objectives deeper inside Russia.
Vuhledar, a deserted former mining town with a prewar population of some 14,000, has been at the center of a ferocious battle since the start of Russia's unprovoked invasion in February 2022.
The city, perched on a hilltop, has been virtually razed to the ground, but it retains its strategic importance for the protection of Russia's supply routes and could act as a springboard toward Pokrovsk, a communications hub some 80 kilometers to the north that Moscow has been eying for months.
Russian Telegram channels posted videos of troops waving the Russian flag over shattered buildings.
As ferocious fighting rages in the east, Russia continued pounding Ukrainian cities and economic infrastructure with relentless drone strikes and shelling.
Early on October 2, Russian drones again struck Ukraine's Danube port of Izmayil, on the border with Romania, which has been Kyiv's only gateway to exporting its grain and other produce.
Two people, including a Turkish citizen, were wounded in the attack on Izmayil, Oleh Kiper, the governor of the Odesa region, said on Telegram.
"The Russians' target was port and border infrastructure. Two men, truck drivers, were wounded, one of them a citizen of Turkey. Currently, the injured are in moderate condition in the hospital," Kiper wrote.
"Russia continues to wage war against grain and global food security," Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba wrote on Telegram, reporting damage to the grain facility and administrative buildings at the Orlivka border crossing with Romania.
Romanian authorities issued a drone alert for the public early on October 2 in Tulcea County on the border.
The Romanian Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said NATO scrambled two Spanish F-18 and two Romanian F-16 jets from bases in southeastern Romania to monitor the situation for several hours.
"During this time interval, Romania's radar surveillance system did not detect the penetration of the drones involved in the attack on the Ukrainian targets into the national airspace," the ministry said in a statement.
In the southern Kherson region, a Russian drone strike on a shuttle bus in Antonivka killed one person and wounded another, regional Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported on Telegram.
Earlier, Russian troops shelled Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported on Telegram.
Private residential buildings and a public garage were damaged, Terekhov said, adding that no injuries had been reported so far.
In a similar attack on Derhachi, a small town some 15 kilometers north of Kharkiv, several people were wounded, including a child, Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synyehubov reported.
"According to emergency medical personnel, five people, including a 14-year-old boy, sustained shrapnel wounds and were also treated for an acute reaction to stress as a result of the strike in Derhachi," Synyehubov wrote on Telegram.
Kazakh Activists Jailed Ahead Of Nuclear-Power Referendum
Five Kazakh activists opposed to the construction of a nuclear power plant have been placed in pretrial detention for at least two months, their lawyers said on October 2. The activists, charged with plotting mass unrest, were detained on September 29, just a week before a national referendum on the nuclear project. The government has pushed for the plant's construction despite widespread opposition. Critics argue that dissent is being silenced ahead of the October 6 poll. Given Kazakhstan's tightly controlled political landscape, many expect the referendum to pass, despite concerns over environmental and political issues. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Kazakh Service, click here.
- By Mike Eckel,
- Mark Krutov and
- Sergei Dobrynin
U.S., British Authorities Publicly Link Ex-FSB Officer To Notorious Russian Ransomware Group
U.S. and British authorities for the first time publicly linked an ex-Russian special forces officer to one of the world's most notorious ransomware groups, adding further evidence of ties, formal and informal, between Russian intelligence agencies and criminal groups.
Eduard Bendersky, who served in the elite Vympel unit of the Federal Security Service, had been identified as early as 2019 as the father-in-law of Maksim Yakubets, the alleged founder of Evil Corp, whose malware has been used around the world to lock out corporate computer systems in exchange for ransom.
Yakubets married Bendersky's daughter Alyona at a lavish wedding ceremony on Moscow's outskirts in 2017, according to photographs and videos discovered by RFE/RL.
In a criminal indictment unsealed in December 2019 against Yakubets, the U.S. Justice Department alleged that he provided "direct assistance to the Russian government's malicious cyber efforts, highlighting the Russian government's enlistment of cybercriminals for its own malicious purposes."
But neither U.S. nor British officials, who have also hit Yakubets and Evil Corp. with financial sanctions, provided details of Yakubets' links to the Russian government.
On October 1, however, the U.S. Treasury Department and Britain's National Crime Agency publicly confirmed Bendersky as Yakubets' father-in-law, calling him a "key enabler of Evil Corp."
"Bendersky leveraged his status and contacts to facilitate Evil Corp's developing relationships with officials of the Russian intelligence services. After the December 2019 sanctions and indictments against Evil Corp and Maksim, Bendersky used his extensive influence to protect the group," the Treasury Department said.
After the December 2019 sanctions and indictments against Evil Corp and Maksim, Maksim sought out Bendersky’s guidance. Bendersky used his extensive influence to protect the group, including his son-in-law, both by providing senior members with security and by ensuring they were not pursued by Russian internal authorities," the department alleged.
Bendersky also, according to the Treasury, was also instrumental in brokering a business deal between Yakubets and Dmitry Kozak, a longtime aide of President Vladimir Putin, as well as German Gref, the current CEO of state banking giant Sberbank.
The National Crime Agency announced parallel sanctions against Bendersky, Yakubets, and more than a dozen other individuals it said were linked to Evil Corp.
Bendersky has made no public comment on the allegations, and could not be located for comment by RFE/RL. Yakubets, who previously had a visible presence on social media, showcasing his love for racing expensive sports cars, has all but disappeared from public view since the 2019 indictment.
The department also alleged that Yakubets' father, Viktor, helped provide technical equipment to his son, helping to facilitate the spread of the ransomware.
The Treasury announcement detailed other alleged links between Yakubets and prominent Russian government insiders. Yakubets, the department alleged, uses his employment at a Russian company to cover his work with Evil Corp. The company, called the National Engineering Corporation, was founded by the son of former Prosecutor-General Yury Chaika.
Relatedly, the U.S. Justice Department unsealed an indictment, first issued in March 2023, charging a Russian man named Aleksandr Ryzhenkov with conspiracy for his work with Evil Corp. Ryzhenkov, officials said, was "a long-term associate and second-in-command" for Yakubets. Ryzhenkov, the National Crime Agency said in its statement, was responsible for a affiliated bit of ransomware called LockBit.
Bendersky has also been linked to the 2019 killing in Berlin of former Chechen field commander Zelimkhan Khangoshvili, according to reporting by the open-source investigative group Bellingcat. An FSB agent named Vadim Krasikov was convicted of killing Khangoshvili, and served several years in a German prison before being released in August as part of a large prisoner swap with the West.
According to Bellingcat, Bendersky directly supervised the preparation for the killing.
Georgian President Refuses To Sign Anti-LGBT Bill Into Law
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has refused to sign into law a bill approved by parliament last month that rights groups and many opposition politicians say drastically curbs the rights of the country's LGBT community.
The so-called "family values" bill was pushed through parliament by the ruling Georgian Dream party on September 17 in an 84-0 vote, which was boycotted by the opposition while rallies were being held by protesters outside the parliament building.
In line with the provisions of the Georgian Constitution, Zurabishvili refused to endorse the bill and returned it to parliament without written comments, the presidential administration confirmed to RFE/RL on October 2.
The move highlights the dramatically polarized political landscape in the Caucasus nation ahead of national elections in October.
Parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili, a co-sponsor of the bill and member of the Georgian Dream is now expected to sign the bill into law and publish it within five days.
The package of legal changes, whose complete title is On Family Values And Protection Of Minors, brings changes to 18 current laws, including legislation on free speech and expression as well as broadcasting.
The measures provide for the banning of gatherings that promote the right of a person to identify as a gender other than "his or her biological sex" and they also prohibit gatherings advocating for same-sex orientation or relationships.
The opposition has boycotted parliamentary meetings since May, when Georgian Dream lawmakers approved a "foreign influence" bill, which Western governments and many Georgians liken to Russia's "foreign agent" law used by the Kremlin to clamp down on dissent with broad discretion.
The law requires organizations that receive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as "agents of foreign influence."
Zurabishvili vetoed that bill, but the ruling party overrode her opposition and promulgated it despite months of public protests and warnings from the United States and the European Union that the measure was eroding Georgia's democracy and its path to integration into the Western institutions.
In response, Washington on September 16 introduced sanctions on more than 60 Georgians, including two members of the government, who it said had "undermined" democracy and human rights in the country, prompting Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze to warn that Tbilisi might revise ties with the United States.
The European Union, meanwhile, reacted to the bill by pausing EU accession negotiations.
Ahead of the October 26 elections, Georgian Dream remains the country's single most popular party, according to opinion polls.
Kyiv Investigating 'Largest Mass Execution' Of Ukrainian Soldiers Captured By Russia
Ukraine's Prosecutor-General’s Office has initiated an investigation into what it describes as the "largest mass execution" of Ukrainian "prisoners of war" by Russian troops since the start of Moscow's full-scale invasion more than 31 months ago.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
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According to an official statement published on the office’s Telegram channel, Russian forces allegedly killed 16 Ukrainian "prisoners of war" near the villages of Mykolayivka and Sukhiy Yar in the Pokrovsk district of the Donetsk region.
Videos circulated on various Telegram channels appear to show Ukrainian soldiers, freshly captured by Russian troops, emerging from a forested area.
After the prisoners have lined up, Russian forces appear to opened fire. The videos then appear to show Russian soldiers approaching those who were only wounded and shooting them again at close range with machine guns.
The videos have not been independently verified.
Under international humanitarian law, executing soldiers who have surrendered is considered a war crime.
"This is the largest reported case of the execution of Ukrainian POWs on the front line and yet another indication that the killing and torture of prisoners of war are not isolated incidents," Ukraine's Prosecutor-General Andriy Kostin said on X.
"This is a deliberate policy of the Russian military and political leadership."
Ukraine's Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets said he had contacted both the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross over the deaths, citing violations of the Geneva Conventions, which govern the treatment of prisoners of war.
The incident is not the first time such allegations against Russian soldiers have surfaced.
In September, CNN released two videos purportedly showing Russian military personnel executing Ukrainian soldiers as they were surrendering.
The footage, filmed by drones and provided by Ukrainian military intelligence, included audio transcripts that seemingly captured the order to execute the soldiers.
Ukraine’s Prosecutor-General's Office informed CNN then that it was currently investigating at least 28 cases involving the murder of Ukrainian prisoners of war since Russia launched its full-scale aggression against its neighbor in February 2022.
Russia has yet to respond to the accusations.
Earlier in August, Danielle Bell, the head of mission for the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, said that 95 percent of Ukrainian soldiers captured by Russia face torture.
- By RFE/RL
Iranian President Vows 'Harsher Response' If Israel Retaliates Against Tehran
Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian said on October 2 that he is not seeking war but warned Israel against retaliating against Iran's missile attack the day before, promising a strong response from Tehran to any further Israeli actions amid growing fears of a wider regional conflict.
"We are not looking for war. It is Israel that forces us to react," Pezeshkian said after arriving in Qatar for a summit with Asian countries.
Pezeshkian criticised Israel over the killing of Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas -- designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the EU -- in July in Tehran, an assassination Israel has neither claimed nor denied responsibility for.
"We also want security and peace. It was Israel that assassinated Haniyeh in Tehran," Pezeshkian was quoted saying on his arrival in Qatar.
Pezeshkian arrived in Qatar a day after Iran fired waves of ballistic missiles at Israel and Israel stepped up its war with Tehran's proxy Hezbollah by sending troops over the border into Lebanon. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he would strike back at Iran following the October 1 missile attack.
"If the Zionist regime (Israel) does not stop its crimes, it will face harsher reactions," Pezeshkian said as he left for the trip, Iranian state media reported.
He added that the United States and European countries should tell Israel not to destabilize the region.
He reiterated his remarks at a joint press conference in Doha with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, saying that if Israel acts in one way against Iran then Tehran will respond in a more severe way.
Tehran on October 1 launched a massive ballistic missile attack on Israel, its largest so far, in retaliation for the campaign launched by the Jewish state in southern Lebanon against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group, prompting warnings of countermeasures from Israel and its main ally, the United States.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a message on X that the attack targeted "solely military and security sites" involved in what he said was the Israeli "genocide in Gaza and Lebanon" and was conducted by Iran in "self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter."
"Our action is concluded unless the Israeli regime decides to invite further retaliation. In that scenario, our response will be stronger and more powerful," Araghchi said.
Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) earlier said the missile attack was in response to Israel's killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah last week.
Hezbollah is both an armed group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, although the European Union has only blacklisted its armed wing.
People who left audio messages for RFE/RL's Radio Farda in response to the attack indicated they had little hope that anything would change.
"The Islamic republic wanted to show pragmatism, but some in analytical circles (experts and journalists) who live outside of Iran, voiced support for war [and] pushed Iran to attack. Nothing will happen and [it] went hand in hand with hard-liners inside," said one man. "You can't just call for war and bloodshed living in the free world. This is against the basics of democracy. Please help. The world needs peace."
Israel Counts The Cost After Iranian Missile Barrage
A woman said it was "ridiculous," and noted that some missiles landed inside Iran.
"They think they can do anything. They lit a fire -- I hope they burn in it as well," she said.
Israeli air defenses intercepted most of the estimated 180 missiles that were fired, military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said, though some landed in central and southern Israel.
Israeli rescuers said two people were lightly injured by shrapnel while in the occupied West Bank, and a Palestinian was killed in Jericho "when pieces of a rocket fell from the sky and hit him," according to the city's governor Hussein Hamayel.
In Damascus, Syria, on October 2, an attack took place in the upscale Mezzeh neighborhood. The official Syrian news agency says three people were killed in the attack that targeted an apartment. The Syrian Observatory says the apartment is used by officers from the IRGC and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah said it repelled the Israeli incursion into southern Lebanon, and Israel reported its first losses -- eight soldiers killed -- since launching cross-border raids this week.
Iran's UN envoy said at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council that the only way to prevent further escalation is for Israel to end the war in Gaza and stop attacks on Lebanon.
Iran's missile attack was "to restore balance and deterrence" and further escalation could be avoided if Israel stopped the war in Gaza and attacks on Lebanon, said Iranian UN Ambassador Amir Saied Iravani.
"Iran is fully prepared to take further defensive measures, if necessary, to protect its legitimate interests and defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty against any acts of military aggression and the illegal use of force," he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the October 1 attack "a big mistake" and said Tehran "will pay for it."
There has been speculation that Israeli might attack sites related to Tehran’s nuclear program, but U.S. President Joe Biden said he would not support that.
Biden’s comments came after he and fellow Group of Seven leaders spoke by phone on October 2 to discuss coordinating new sanctions against Iran.
The G7 leaders "unequivocally condemned Iran's attack against Israel” and Biden reiterated the United States' "full solidarity and support to Israel and its people," a White House statement said.
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