July 6, 2023

06.07.2023 – SEEMO Alarmed About Violent Attack on Journalist Elena Milashina in Chechnya

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is alarmed about the violent attack and threats against Elena Milashina (Елена Валерьевна Милашина), a Russian investigative journalist from Novaya Gazeta, and lawyer Alexander Nemov on Tuesday 4 July 2023, in Chechnya.

Milashina and Nemov were traveling to Grozny, capital of the Chechen Republic, when they were intercepted and assaulted. It has been reported that the attackers fractured several of her fingers, forcibly shaved Milashina’s head, and covered her head in green color, causing her to lose consciousness. Both victims have been hospitalized after the attack in Grozny.

Milashina has been threatened and attacked in the past several times, starting from 2012 when the first attacked happened. In February 2022 she was attacked at the Kontinent Hotel in Grozny. After two months she received death threats.

SEEMO is asking the local authorities in the Republic and Russian authorities in Moscow to take urgent action and exhaust all available resources to ensure that those responsible for this brutal attack are brought to justice. This alarming incident highlights the dangerous environment faced by journalists and emphasizes the urgent need to safeguard media freedom and the well-being of media workers in Russia.

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