MOSCOW: A Russian court on Friday ordered the arrest in absentia of a CNN journalist, Nick Paton Walsh, for reporting from Ukrainian-held territory in Russia’s Kursk region.

Moscow has launched several criminal proceedings against Western journalists who had produced reports from the Kursk region after Kyiv’s surprise August incursion.

It has charged them with illegally crossing the border.

The court in the city of Kursk ordered Paton Walsh’s arrest, demanding his extradition to Russia.

“The court decided that Nick Paton Walsh be arrested while on Russian territory or upon extradition,” the court said in a statement.

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Paton Walsh is a British journalist who previously reported for Channel 4 News and The Guardian newspaper in Moscow.

Earlier this week, Russia ordered the arrest of two Italian journalists for reporting from inside the Kursk region.

Ukrainian forces have controlled swathes of Russia’s Kursk region since their Aug 6 incursion. Russia has banned criticism of its Ukraine offensive.

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2024