by Stephen Lendman

A previous article described Marsha Gessen as follows: She’s a US propagandist/Putin basher living in Moscow - a former controversial Washington controlled Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Russian Service director.

Her job then and now is proliferating anti-Russian/anti-Putin propaganda. Virtually everything she says and writes is rubbish - fabrications polar opposite truth.

No legitimate editors would touch her stuff. The NYT features it often - in lieu of independent contributors discussing hard truths everyone needs to know on issues mattering most - prohibited by Times editors, serving wealth and power interests exclusively at the expense of real journalism. On August 28, Gessen headlined “Oleg Sentsov and the Kremlin’s Thin Skin.” Disinformation followed. More on this below.

On August 25, the North Caucasus District Military Court found Ukrainian filmmaker Sentsov guilty of conspiracy to commit terrorism in Crimea - sentencing him to 20 years imprisonment. His accomplice Alexander Kolchenko got 10 years.

After hearing the verdict, both defendants began singing Ukraine’s national anthem - whether a tacit admission of guilt let others decide.

Sentsov’s lawyers intend appealing. Attorney Dmitry Dinze called the treatment of his client “the height of injustice and arbitrary rule.”

“We do not think that the Supreme Court (will) change anything,” he added.

Naturally, we are going to demand (both defendants) serve prison terms in Ukraine. But it’s going to be hard because (they’re) Russian citizens.”

Prosecutor’s charged Sentsov and Kolchenko with involvement in setting up a Crimea-based terrorist group - responsible for setting offices in Simferopol ablaze in spring 2014, claiming they planned blowing up a statue of Vladimir Lenin, as well as destroying or damaging other Crimean facilities. Both men pleaded not guilty.

Sentsov is a Kiev funded filmmaker. In May, Poroshenko signed a decree - awarding him and dozens of other cultural and artistic figures state grants.

Sputnik News said he also “was charged with illegal acquisition, sale and possession of weapons under Russia’s Criminal Code.”

Gessen lied claiming his Crimean arrest was in Ukrainian territory - ludicrously adding “what made him a terrorist in the eyes of the Russian court apparently was the symbolism of his alleged crimes.”

Russian citizenship was forced on him, she maintained - wrongfully accusing Moscow of abducting other “foreign citizens on foreign soil and dragg(ing) them into its own courts” - ignoring Washington’s odious history of pressuring other governments to arrest individuals, extradite them to America to be prosecuted on fabricated charges.

In April 2014, Russia’s Foreign Ministry warned its citizens planning foreign travel - explaining they risked arrest and extradition to America.

“Without any reasons the US administration is refusing to recognize the reunification between Russia and Crimea that fully meets the international legal standards and the UN charter. It tries to make a routine practice out of hunting for Russian citizens in third countries with subsequent extradition and conviction in the USA, usually over dubious charges,” its ministry said.

Gessen failed to explain - proliferating anti-Russian propaganda in all her writing - selectively featured in The New York Times, malicious rubbish no legitimate editors would touch.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs three times weekly: live on Sundays at 1PM Central time plus two prerecorded archived programs

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs three times weekly: live on Sundays at 1PM Central time plus two prerecorded archived programs.