UN Panel Concludes Russia's Detention of US Reporter Evan Gershkovich Violates International Law

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions has deemed the detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich as arbitrary, stating that he was arrested to punish him for his reporting on the war in Ukraine. The group's chair emphasized that their opinion is grounded in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The panel found a "striking lack of factual or legal substantiation" for the spying charges brought against Gershkovich, who became the first Western journalist to be arrested in Russia since the Cold War. The Kremlin has not provided public evidence to support the accusations. Human rights experts have condemned the detention as a violation of international law and are calling for Gershkovich's immediate release.