On 10 March 2026, a Russian court sentenced Ukrainian media expert Iryna Zemlyana to 13 years of prison in absentia, according to Russian independent media.
The verdict was issued by the Moscow City Court, which found Zemlyana guilty under several charges, including alleged violence against a representative of a foreign state, incitement of hatred, and spreading so-called “fake” information about the Russian army.
The charges related to “fake” information were linked to social media posts Zemlyana made about Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The rest of the case relates to an incident on 9 May 2022 in Warsaw, during which protesters threw red liquid at the Russian ambassador. Russian authorities claim Zemlyana was involved, while she denies the accusations and states that she did not commit the act attributed to her. She also noted that Polish law enforcement did not find her guilty in connection with the incident.
Zemlyana described the case as fabricated and politically motivated.
Iryna Zemlyana is a media expert affiliated with the Institute of Mass Information.