The trial against the well-known civil rights activist Oleg Orlov for allegedly repeatedly discrediting the Russian army is underway in Moscow. Orlov was allowed to include Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov in his defense team on the first day of the hearing, according to the Memorial Human Rights Center, which Orlov heads. The next hearing was postponed to July 3.
The criminal case against Orlov was launched in March after the civil rights activist posted a Facebook post in which he referred to a translation of his article for a French media outlet. In the article he criticized Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
Orlov has twice been fined for “discrediting the army.” If convicted again, he faces several years in prison. The civil rights organization Memorial, which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year, is now banned in Russia.
Source: Stern
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