Russia Intelligence Agency Sues Paper Over Torture Reports

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's main intelligence agency is suing a major independent newspaper for defamation over reports of torture in a Russian city.

Court filings show that a Moscow court on Tuesday accepted the FSB's lawsuit against Novaya Gazeta over two articles published earlier this year. Novaya Gazeta interviewed rights activists and the wife of a man who was reportedly tortured soon after a deadly explosion in an apartment building in the city of Magnitogorsk in the Ural mountains on New Year's Eve.

Officials blamed the explosion on a gas leak, but several media reports suggested that it may have been a targeted bombing.

Novaya Gazeta reported in January that a Kyrgyz man was detained and tortured by FSB officers who allegedly wanted him to plead guilty to arranging the bombing.

Subscribe to Closing Arguments

Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.

Email *

Submit