Prepared by Messenger Staff
Russian Journalist Given 10-Year Sentence in Absentia Over Statement on Georgia
A Russian journalist has been sentenced in absentia to 10 years in prison for referring to Russia's occupation of 20 percent of Georgia, according to Russian independent media.
Valeria Kichigina, a journalist with Dozhd, was convicted by the Tagansky District Court in Moscow on charges of spreading what authorities called "fake news about the war."
The case is notable as the first known instance in Russia where such charges are linked to statements about the 2008 war with Georgia, rather than criticism of the war in Ukraine.
The charges stem from an Instagram story in which Kichigina marked the anniversary of the August 2008 war. She wrote that Russian forces entered Georgia on the night of August 7 to 8 and bombed cities, adding that 20 percent of the country remains under Russian occupation.
Kichigina said the post served as a pretext for the case against her. She linked the prosecution to her reporting on the so-called Baymak case.
Cleric Says No Will Exists After Death of Patriarch Ilia II
No will exists, and none was needed after the death of Ilia II, proto-presbyter Giorgi Zviadadze said on March 24 at the Sioni Patriarchal Cathedral.
Zviadadze said the Patriarch had already appointed Metropolitan Shio as locum tenens during his lifetime, making a will unnecessary under church rules. He explained that a will is only required if no such appointment is made. In that case, the position would go to the most senior member of the Holy Synod by ordination.
He said there is no written will and that the Synod would have been aware of it if one existed. According to Zviadadze, the Patriarch made a clear, deliberate decision in advance to avoid uncertainty.
Zviadadze also urged the media not to speculate about a successor during the mourning period, saying such discussions are inappropriate while the Church is grieving.
Ilia II died on March 17. His body lay in state at Holy Trinity Cathedral, and he was buried on March 22 at Sioni Cathedral.
