TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A Russian court on Monday opened the trial of a theater director and a playwright accused of advocating terrorism in a play, the latest step in an unrelenting crackdown on dissent in Russia that has reached new heights since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine.
Zhenya Berkovich, a prominent independent theater director, and playwright Svetlana Petriychuk have been jailed for over a year. Authorities claim their play “Finist, the Brave Falcon” justifies terrorism, which is a criminal offense in Russia punishable by up to seven years in prison. Berkovich and Petriychuk have both repeatedly rejected the accusations against them.
Berkovich told the court on Monday that she staged the play in order to prevent terrorism, and Petriychuk echoed her sentiment, saying that she wrote it in order to prevent events like those depicted in the play.
What a blast to work at NASA. Space agency is sky
China's Tibet Achieves Overall Carbon Neutrality
Villages Become Entrepreneurship Hubs for Youngsters in Chongqing
Torch Relay of 19th Asian Games Continues in Jinhua
Shooting injures 2 at Missouri high school graduation ceremony
China Takes 5th Consecutive Women's Team Title in Asiad Table Tennis
Award Ceremony Held to Honor Foreigners for Contribution to Cultural Exchanges
Kate Hudson hits the stage to debut songs from her new album Glorious at star
Asian Games Torch Relay Highlights Dreams in Shaoxing
Elon Musk gets approval from FDA to implant his Neuralink brain chip into a second patient
Students Learn About Intangible Cultural Heritages in Summer Vacation in Guangxi, S China