Latest news with #FSB
Novaya Gazeta Europe
7 hours ago
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Russian security forces carry out raids against Azerbaijani suspects in unsolved murder — Novaya Gazeta Europe
Police in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals have carried out raids against members of a family from Azerbaijan as part of an investigation into unsolved crimes going back several years, local news outlet E1 reported on Saturday. One of the suspects died as police and special forces broke into his home, according to E1. 'He felt ill and clutched his chest. An ambulance was called ... and they tried to revive him, but couldn't save him. He wasn't a young man,' an acquaintance told E1. Azerbaijani media outlet said Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officers had raided addresses associated with the Safarov family, who also hold Russian citizenship. According to family members, two people, brothers Huseyn and Ziyaddin, were killed, while another eight were injured after being beaten. The two dead men ran a restaurant in Yekaterinburg. Unconfirmed press reports have said the operation against the Safarov family related to a 2001 murder in the Aghdam district of Azerbaijan. The regional Investigative Committee and Interior Ministry press services said inquiries were ongoing and referred to 'multiple crimes'. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry demanded an inquiry into the FSB raid in the course of which, it said, nine people had been detained. It confirmed that the raid had left people dead and injured, but did not specify details. 'We expect … the Russian side to … bring the perpetrators of this unacceptable violence to justice as soon as possible,' it said.
Al Jazeera
2 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Russian photographer gets 16 years prison for Soviet-era bunker details
A Russian court found a photographer guilty of treason and jailed him for 16 years for allegedly sharing information about Soviet-era underground bunkers to an American journalist. The court in the western city of Perm sentenced Grigory Skvortsov on Thursday after a closed-door trial, without giving more details on the charges. Skvortsov, who was arrested by Russian authorities in 2023, has denied any wrongdoing. The court said Skvortsov would serve his sentence in a maximum-security corrective prison camp. It also published a photograph of him in a glass courtroom cage dressed in black as he listened to the verdict being read out. In a December 2024 interview with Pervy Otdel, a group of exiled Russian lawyers, Skvortsov said he had passed on information that was either publicly available online or available to buy from the Russian author of a book about Soviet-era underground facilities for use in the event of a nuclear war. Skvortsov did not name the US journalist he was working with in the interview with Pervy Otdel. Since its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in 2022, Russia has radically expanded its definition of what constitutes state secrets and has jailed academics, scientists and journalists it deems to have contravened the new rules. Skvortsov, who specialises in architecture photography, has also spoken out publicly against Moscow's military offensive on Ukraine. He has alleged that Federal Security Service (FSB) officers beat him during his arrest in November 2023 and said they tried to force him under duress to admit guilt to treason. An online support group for Skvortsov said on Telegram after the verdict that 'a miracle had not happened' and the photographer's only hope of getting out of jail was to be exchanged as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and the West. The Nobel Peace Prize-winning rights organisation Memorial has listed Skvortsov as among those subjected to criminal prosecution that is likely 'politically motivated and marked by serious legal violations'. Earlier this year, a Russian court sentenced four journalists to five and a half years in prison each after convicting them of 'extremism' linked to their alleged work with an organisation founded by the late opposition leader Alexey Navalny.
LeMonde
2 days ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
Georgian winemakers wish to end dependency on Russian market: 'Otherwise, we risk losing our identity'
When she saw the photo on social media in September 2022, Nino Gagua, a 52-year-old Georgian woman, first thought it was a fake. In the image, the then Ukrainian defense minister, Oleksii Reznikov, posed with a bottle of wine produced by her husband, a winemaker based in Kakheti, the wine-growing region in eastern Georgia. The Russian invasion of Ukraine had begun seven months earlier, on February 24, 2022. The minister, dressed in a sweatshirt and khaki cap, promised to celebrate Ukraine's victory with that vintage. With this single photo, the label of the Georgian winemaker, Winiveria, became a symbol of support for Ukraine against Moscow. "We didn't even know he was aware of our wine," recalled the producer, Giorgi Piradashvili, a cigar in hand, sitting with his wife on the terrace of his wine estate on a May morning. "It came as a huge surprise." It was also a source of pride, because, like the entire Georgian population, he declared his solidarity with the Ukrainians: "We have the same enemy. Russia also invaded Georgia [during a lightning war in August 2008] and still occupies 20% of our territory." The photo also marked the start of the winemaker's troubles. A Russian blogger spotted it and circulated it on his social media, accusing Piradashvili of funding the conflict. The producer's name ended up on a list held by the FSB, the Russian security services. "It became dangerous for me. They know exactly where I live and could come and get me here," he said, obviously anxious. "It's so absurd. All this just because I sell wine?" Feeling uneasy, his Russian customers canceled their orders, fearing reprisals from the Kremlin. But although Piradashvili defends the Ukrainian cause, he is above all a pragmatic and shrewd businessman.
Russia Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Russian woman arrested for leaking military secrets to Ukraine
A Russian woman suspected of treason has been detained in Novorossiysk, a major port city on the Black Sea in southern Russia, the Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Thursday. The agency said she gathered and sent information on Russian military assets to Ukrainian intelligence. The FSB stated that the suspect worked on a civilian vessel in the ports of Novorossiysk and Sochi. During this time, she allegedly initiated contact with a pro-Ukrainian terrorist group, which the FSB said is controlled by Ukrainian intelligence services. The woman is accused of collecting details regarding the locations of Russian Navy vessels and air defense sites and sharing them with her Ukrainian handlers. 'No damage was allowed to be inflicted on military equipment or personnel of the Russian Armed Forces due to timely measures taken,' the statement reads. The FSB's branch in Krasnodar Region has opened a criminal case under the article for high treason. The woman has been placed in pretrial detention. The offense carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The agency has also shared a video of the woman's arrest. In the clip, when confronted about passing information about military facilities to a foreign government, she said she 'didn't see anything terrible in it.' The video also included a recorded confession in which the woman said she was contacted by a representative of Ukrainian intelligence. 'He offered me monetary compensation for cooperation. I agreed. Later, he gave me tasks to collect information about the locations of military facilities in Novorossiysk, Sochi, and Sevastopol,' she said. The suspect stated that she sent the information to a person named 'Maxim' via Telegram and acknowledged her guilt. In a separate message, the FSB warned that Ukrainian intelligence services are increasingly using Telegram and WhatsApp to recruit Russian citizens for reconnaissance and sabotage activities. Earlier on Thursday, the Russian security services reported the arrest of another woman in St. Petersburg who has also been charged with collecting data on Russian military personnel on behalf of Ukrainian intelligence and aiding in the organization of an act of terrorism. The woman allegedly helped establish the residences of Russian servicemen, as well as their vehicles and those of family members 'for the purpose of preparing and carrying out terrorist attacks against them,' the FSB said. The suspect faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
ITV News
3 days ago
- Business
- ITV News
Many businesses face challenges sending goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, says report
The Windsor Framework is causing widespread disruption to trade, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). A report on the impact of the framework has found many companies in Great Britain have stopped trading with Northern Ireland. Companies were also critical of the assistance which is available from the government to help navigate the difficulties. A FSB survey found 58% of those who responded said they were facing moderate to significant challenges trading from Great Britain to NI. As a result of that, more than a third (34%) of the companies said have already ceased trading rather than deal with the demands. Roger Pollen from the FSB said: "I think we've come a long way from the initial break out of the EU. We had the Northern Ireland Protocol and then we had the Windsor Framework. "And all of these have been lots of sticking plasters to try and stop the bleeding, but actually underneath there's still a wound that needs to be addressed. "The system is not yet functioning properly to facilitate free trade and easy trade. We need to address that. "There are recommendations in the report, things that could be done to make this work a lot better. "And if we get that right, then the much vaunted dual market access could actually operate, but at the moment the market access within the UK alone is clearly compromised; that's not good enough." On Wednesday, the Secretary of State responded to the figures detailed in the report, saying he wanted feedback from businesses. Hilary Benn said: "We should do all that we can to make sure that the information that we provide to businesses helps them to understand what the rules are to navigate their way through them and to make them operate effectively for the business itself. "The question I would ask as follow up is - if you think that aspects of the service are not very good, well, in what way? What is your feedback? How do you think it could be improved? "Because we have to take a practical approach. What is it about what you can see at the moment that doesn't work for you? What are your suggestions for how it could be improved? "And that is something that we will talk to businesses about."
