Unadulterated fascism. "Journalist" Mardan encourages authorities to, "if not shoot [Ukrainian teachers who refuse to reach in Russian], then at least burn their homes and send them to Gulags, in our good old tradition". Also asks why they didn't shoot family of non-collaborator.
!! One of the most gruesome investigations we have worked on: @bellingcat identified the exact location and the group that mutilated and executed a Ukrainian PoW: bellingcat.com/news/2022/08/0…
The geolocation of the (war-)crime scene was a mind-boggling collaborative process led by @Michael1Sheldon, with @Mabl2K and @AricToler in tow. How do you find a spot on Earth having just a rock , a blurry tree and a window as clues?
I talked to more than 20 minutes to the suspected executioner. It was blood-curdling, as he lost himself in contradictions and untruths, yet was trying to convince me that "the video is a fake, the FSB told me so."
Breaking: Moscow's Khimki court has just sentenced US basketball player Brittney Griner to 9 years in penal colony and a 1 m rub ($16 k) fine on charges of carrying residue of hash in her vaping atomizer. sportrbc.ru/news/62ebbb639…
The court gave 9 years vs the 9.5 years requested by the prosecutor, so de facto the maximum requested term. This was expected as Putin needs a stick and a carrot for his swap negotiations with the US.
Victor Bout, Russia's most prolific arms dealer, dictator-corrupter and sanction-buster, is on the table. However, in a game of chicken, Russia *says* it won't trade US citizens Griner + Paul Whelan for Bout - although the value of Bout to the Kremlin is irreplaceable.
Today FSB announced that they have “foiled a plot by Ukraine’s intelligence services” to lure Russian military pilots to surrender to Ukraine – with their planes – in return for millions of USD in payments (thread).
Using a traditional mix of forged "evidence" and loosely interpreted facts, the FSB also accused me personally of being involved in the plane-hijacking plot (on screen: totally forged message, I never had a UK number, obviously).
What is true, however, is I was involved in this crazier-than-fiction story of triple-agents, fake passports and faux girlfriends - as a documentary film maker. Yes, we were chronicling one of the wackiest counter-counter-intel operations of all time. And the docu is still on.
Persistent but unconfirmed chatter today that Zelensky has revoked the Ukrainian citizenship of several oligarchs and even an MP from his own party. Looking into this...
The people mentioned (including now in this @ukrpravda_news story) are Ihor Kolomoysky, Gennady Korban, Vadim Rabybovich and Ihor Vasilkovskiy (MP from Ze's party). pravda.com.ua/news/2022/07/2…
A copy of Zelensky's alleged decree from 18 July stripping 10 persons (incl Kolomoysky) of Ukrainian citizenship is making the rounds today. It's hard to validate if it's authentic, but it's numbered #502. And indeed that's a missing (=secret) decree number in the registry.
Exactly at this time 8 years ago, Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 took off from Amsterdam with 298 people on board. Less than 3 hours later, they were all killed by a BUK anti-aircraft weapon, fired by the same incompetent Russian army that is killing mothers and children today.
Four suspects are on trial in absentia at the Hague regional court, with the verdict expected by end of this year. However, they only the deniable "volunteers" who acted as proxy for the Kremlin. The investigation into the chain of command including who shot the plane continues.
For 8 years, Russian authorities have been shamelessly lying about their role in the shooting. They have concocted dozens of "alternative theories" that they spread via controlled media and useful idiots. We investigated one of the disinfo projects here: bellingcat.com/news/uk-and-eu…
Ahead of US and Canada organizing a special screening of #Navalny for members of OPCW at the Hague, the Russian embassy organized a screening of an anti-#Navalny "documentary". It was attended by "many Asian, Latin-American and African diplomats" (all seen on the photo).
(is that Naryshkin in the corner masquerading as Amb. Don Incognito)
OMG. I must have just caused the deletion of Russia's SVR Chief Naryshkin, as just noticed by @pevchikh. Someone pls go save him at the Hague.
Left: TASS article before my tweet. Right: just after. And in the TASS tweet, Naryshkin has been cropped out.