Evan Gershkovich. Image source: CNBC
Evan Gershkovich appeared in court in Moscow on Tuesday, April 18, 2023 – this is the first that he would make a public appearance since his arrest weeks ago.
Whilst working for the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), he was taken into custody in Yekaterinburg and charged with espionage.
The WSJ’s attorneys were able to meet with him, and the company stated that it was doing “everything in its power to support Evan and his family.
The detention of the journalist has been condemned by US leaders, including President Joe Biden, as well as Republican and Democratic senators. The journalist is now under the jurisdiction of the US special envoy for hostage affairs.
“A report by the James Foley Legacy Foundation has stated that in 2022, at least 65 Americans were being unjustly detained in foreign countries.
Meanwhile, the daughter of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Soviet human rights activist, Andrei Sakharov, has denounced the treatment of journalists as ‘primitive, unjustifiable, and appalling’.