Russian activist jailed for six years over Ukraine posts

A Russian court on Wednesday sentenced a female activist to six years in prison after she was accused of spreading false information about the Russian army.

Olga Smirnova, a member of the Peaceful Resistance movement, was also banned from managing websites for three years, said the OVD-Info rights group, which monitors opposition arrests said.

A representative of the Kirovsk district court in Saint Petersburg confirmed to AFP that Smirnova had been sentenced, but declined to provide details.

In March 2022, Smirnova published several social media posts about the tactics of the Russian army in Ukraine and the deaths of civilians.

Since unleashing full-scale hostilities against Ukraine a year and a half ago, public criticism of the Kremlin's offensive has been outlawed and a number of prominent and ordinary Russians have received long prison terms.