Putin has no mercy. The hero of the invasion of Ukraine is still behind bars
The terrorist Igor Girkin, who years ago helped Russia destabilize Ukraine and take over Crimea, will still be in prison. A bitter enemy of Vladimir Putin asked for mercy and release from arrest, but the court in Moscow did not listen to him. And it extended the arrest until December 18. And this is probably not the end of the adventures of the former FSB agent with the Russian justice system.
Vladimir Putin and his officials have no mercy for Igor Girkin, aka Striełkow, one of the heroes of the attack on Ukraine in 2014. Without the former FSB colonel, it would have been impossible to destabilize Donbas and Luhansk, as well as to take over Crimea. He was one of the leaders of the "green men" and he is behind the attack on eastern Ukraine.
But that was almost a decade ago, and now Igor Girkin is in jail. For over a year he has harshly criticized army commanders and Vladimir Putin, whom he even called a "coward". His harsh materials and reactions to Russian losses on the front did not please the Kremlin. The same goes for his nationalist activities, which raised considerable concerns.
Not only did Girkin stop listening, but he also gained a large number of supporters.
And that's why he was finally arrested in July and isolated from his community. Vladimir Putin does not forgive his enemies, and Igor Girkin has done a lot to attain the status of a man the president hates. And he was even declaring that he wanted to run in the March elections and overthrow the leader.
It now turns out that the court in Moscow has extended the terrorist's arrest until December 18. Girkin and his lawyers appealed, but it didn't do much good. The 52-year-old will remain behind bars, where his health is deteriorating, and many dangers lurk. He found out about this himself.
Miroslawa Reginska, wife of terrorist Igor Girkin alias Strielkov, fears for her husband's life. Some time ago, she sent a special letter to Vladimir Putin, in which she asked that her husband in prison be treated "fairly and according to the law." She noted that fear for his life is not unfounded. She was right, Girkin was severely beaten.
A Ukrainian soldier was supposed to get him in the prison yard. Another time he ended up in the same car - on the way to court - with Mariupol defenders. However, they did not harm him, even though the authorities made sure they knew who they were dealing with.
Who is the terrorist Igor Girkin, aka Striełkow?
In the West, the former FSB agent and intelligence officer is considered a terrorist and there is no exaggeration in this.
Girkin was the commander of the pro-Russian separatist forces in Donbas in the summer of 2014, when the Malaysia Airlines plane was shot down. On July 17, 2014, near the village of Hrabove in the Donetsk region, the Russians fired at the MH17 plane using the 9K37 BUK system, which crashed to the ground. 298 people were killed, most of them Dutch citizens.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Netherlands for a terrorist attack. He faces the death penalty in Ukraine, there is evidence that he tortured and killed soldiers captured by the Russians. He is wanted by the Criminal Court in The Hague. He was a respected commentator on the invasion of Ukraine and appeared in the media as an expert. Problems began when he openly started criticizing Vladimir Putin.
