Russian authorities blocked Sunday the website of a new editorial project of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, forced to suspend its publication in March, in the midst of a crackdown on criticism of the offensive in Ukraine.
On July 15, its editorial staff launched a paper review that can be consulted online via a new website and called “Novaya Rasskaz-Gazeta“. This first issue notably contains analyzes of Vladimir Putin’s totalitarianism and ideology. But, a week later, the Russian telecoms policeman blocked this new site at the request of the prosecution. On Sunday, it was inaccessible in Russia without a virtual private network (VPN), AFP journalists found. “Our site was nipped in the bud. We lasted seven days and nine hours“, lamented its writing in a press release.
She claims that the Russian prosecutor’s office accuses her — without providing details — of “discreditof the Russian armed forces, a new offense used since March to stifle any criticism of the military intervention in Ukraine. “For the time being, there are no complaints against our journal in paper format. So we will continue to prepare its second issue“, adds the editorial staff, calling its readers”not to be discouraged“.
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The Novaya Gazeta newspaper, a pillar of investigation in Russia, renowned for its investigations into the corruption of Russian elites and serious human rights violations, was forced at the end of March to suspend its online and print publication. The Russian authorities were threatening him with a ban for failing to comply with a controversial law on “foreign agents“. After this suspension, part of its editorial staff emigrated and launched a new edition from Western Europe. The editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta, Dmitry Muratov, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021.
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