Three journalists working for independent Russian media have been arrested in Moscow ahead of a concert to commemorate the Kremlin's annexation of Ukrainian regions, a human rights group said.
The concert marked the two-year anniversary of Russian President Vladimir Putin signing decrees to annex the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, as well as the southern regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, on September 30, 2022.
Citing relatives of the detainees, human rights NGO OVD-info said one of the journalists worked for the Republic news website and the other two for SOTAvision, AFP reported.
They were taken to a police station and two of them will be "charged with hooliganism", the human rights organization said, adding that their mobile phones had been confiscated.
SOTAvision said on Telegram that its reporters, who were denied access to the celebration in the capital's Red Square, were arrested while interviewing spectators leaving the concert.
The broadcaster is one of the last Russian media outlets still trying to document the Kremlin's crackdown on dissent.
Since the Russian offensive in Ukraine began in February 2022, the Kremlin has stepped up its pressure on foreign and independent press outlets in the country.
Both Respublika and SOTAvision are classified by the authorities as "foreign agents," a label used in Russia against critical voices. | BGNES
