Steve Rosenberg: Russian snitching evokes ghosts of the past

More Russians have been reporting each other since Ukraine invasion - what are the implications?

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessWomen at the HelmFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersRussia's targeting of 'enemies within' evokes ghosts of the Soviet pastBBCAnna Alexandrova is on trial for allegedly spreading fake news about the Russian armyI’m sitting in a courtroom in the town of Pushkin, 400 miles north-west of Moscow.

Opposite me is the “aquarium” - the glass and metal box where the defendant is locked, the courtroom cage that makes anyone on trial in Russia look like a dangerous criminal.

Behind the glass is Anna Alexandrova. The 46-year-old hairdresser has been charged with “the public dissemination of knowingly false information about the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation”.

Put simply, spreading fake news about the Russian army. The charge relates to messages and social media posts she has been accused of sending.

The key prosecution witness is here, too - Anna’s neighbour.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ejk4p3jxjo

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