Ukraine war: Putin’s hunt for his own people – 13,000 arrests – politics abroad

Putin is waging war once morest Ukraine. So that not everyone knows, Putin is also waging a war once morest his own people, once morest people who take to the streets once morest the Kremlin tyrant.

More than 13,400 people have been arrested in anti-war demonstrations in more than 140 cities in Russia since the start of the war.

The profane reasons: they chanted “No to the war”, held up signs once morest the invasion, were simply there. And: Putin’s police officers discovered messages on their cell phones that talked regarding the war.

► According to “OWD-Info”, around 5,000 people are still in prison in 69 cities – including 13 journalists and 113 young people.

The fact is: Putin’s bloody war in Ukraine is also an information war – not only once morest the West, but also once morest its own citizens.

This is how it started, this is how it looks now

Last week, the pro-Putin parliament (“Duma”) passed a new “fake news” law. ANYONE found spreading false news regarding the military faces up to 15 years in prison. The Kremlin decides what is wrong.

Foto: Getty Images

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This man was arrested in Moscow on Sunday for taking part in a banned demonstrationFoto: Getty Images

These include: “False” information, criticizing the military (meaning: criticizing the Putin line) or using words in the context of Putin’s current war of aggression (including war, attack, invasion).

In addition, draconian fines are imposed on demo participants.

• Participating in a demo for the first time is punished with a fine of 20,000 rubles (regarding 172 euros). If this “act” is repeated, the fine increases tenfold (200,000 rubles, 1,720 euros).
• It gets really expensive when you take part three times: If a judge declares the perpetrator to be an extremist (usually the third time), the account is seized and the available money is limited to 10,000 rubles (86 euros). This also means that there is no longer enough money to pay the fine. This cycle ends: in jail! (one day to 30 days). Optionally, 120 hours of “penal labor” can also be imposed.

All of this leads to absurd scenes: police officers stop citizens on the streets of Moscow and demand that their phones be handed over. Videos show how Putin’s police officers scroll through the message history of those stopped – if the word “war” appears, there are severe consequences.

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Whether this procedure is legal at all: doubtful. Whether Putin and his followers care: apparently not. Because the plan is clear: stir up fear and prevent free speech at all costs.

On Sunday, despite all the threats, thousands of courageous people ran through St. Petersburg, Moscow, Novosibirsk, Kaliningrad and Yekaterinburg, among others, chanting “No to war”. Now a criminal offense in Russia.

Hundreds were arrested, and there were even mass arrests in Moscow. Dozens of police vans were ready.

Photo: Stringer/dpa

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In the background a woman is walking her dog, in the foreground two police officers arrest a man on the street Photo: Stringer/dpa