18:10, 3 February 2021

Police recognize a Moscow journalist as a protestor

Policemen detain an activist in Moscow, February 2, 2021. Photo: REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Dmitry Nikitin, a correspondent of the "Open Media" who covered a spontaneous protest action held by Alexei Navalny's supporters in Moscow, was detained and charged with violating the procedure for holding a public event.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 31, in the south of Russia, like in other Russian regions, protest actions were held in support of Alexei Navalny.

On February 2, in Moscow, the court found Alexei Navalny guilty of violating the probation and replaced his suspended sentence with the imprisonment by sending the defendant to a penal colony for 3.5 years. Meanwhile, the court took into account the period of time Alexei Navalny spent under house arrest, and as a result, the oppositionist is to spend 2.8 years in the penal colony.

Dmitry Nikitin was covering the protest action, but the police detained him, although he had a press pass, an editorial assignment, and a vest with the words "Press" on it, the "Open Media" reports.

On February 2, the "Syndicate 100", the association of independent Russian media outlets, requested the chiefs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) and the National Guard of Russia "to stop hindering the professional activities of journalists and stop the persecution of journalists doing their job."

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 3, 2021 at 01:15 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.