Russia fines newspaper editor for ‘discrediting the army’

MOSCOW: Russian authorities on Thursday fined journalist Sergei Sokolov, the editor of independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, for discrediting the army after detaining him, his newspaper reported.

Sokolov said he did not agree with the charge against him.

The case stemmed from an article published in Novaya Gazeta in December 2023 entitled “Nobody’s boys” about Russians orphans who signed army contracts to fight in Ukraine, the official Telegram channel for Moscow’s court system said.

Novaya Gazeta said in an online report that Sokolov’s detention was over coverage of the Russian army in an article, but did not provide more details.

A district court in Moscow subsequently fined Sokolov 30,000 roubles ($327.88) on Thursday after finding him guilty of discrediting the Russian armed forces, an administrative offence. —Reuters