Russian Court Sentences 32-Year-Old WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich to 16 Years for Espionage

Jul 19, 2024, 12:38 PM

A Russian court has sentenced Evan Gershkovich, a 32-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter, to 16 years in a high-security penal colony on espionage charges. Gershkovich, who was detained in Yekaterinburg in March 2023, has denied the accusations, which both the Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government have rejected as baseless and politically motivated. The trial, conducted behind closed doors, has been widely condemned as a sham by international observers. The U.S. government and various media organizations have called for Gershkovich's immediate release, raising concerns about press freedom and human rights violations in Russia. The sentence could potentially pave the way for a prisoner swap between the U.S. and Russia.