JRL NEWSWATCH: “Protests in Russia Put Spotlight on Wartime Ethnic Grievances” – New York Times

“The trial and conviction of an activist in the Ural Mountains region sparked one of the biggest outbreaks of social unrest since the start of the war.”

“The trial of a minority rights activist in Russia … sparked one of [Russia’s]  biggest outbreaks of social unrest … since the start of the [Russo-Ukrainian] war … highlighting the strain … on Russia’s complex ethnic relations. Hundreds of protesters clashed with … police … in … Baymak, near Russia’s border with Kazakhstan, after a local court sentenced an advocate for the local Bashkir ethnic minority to four years in prison … [for allegedly] inciting ethnic discord and discrediting the Russian army. … Russian legal aid group[] OVD-Info[] said … at least 20 people had been detained and another 20 injured in the protest. … [V]ideo … showed protesters throwing snowballs at a wall of police officers in riot gear; other videos showed the police leading some protesters away and protesters exposed to what appeared to be tear gas. … [A recent] crackdown came despite attempts by the protesters to emphasize that their focus was on supporting [] Alsynov, rather than criticism of the federal government or calls for greater autonomy. …”

Click here for: “Protests in Russia Put Spotlight on Wartime Ethnic Grievances; The trial and conviction of an activist in the Ural Mountains region sparked one of the biggest outbreaks of social unrest since the start of the war.” – New York Times: Anatoly Kurmanaev