Marina Ovsyannikova, the former editor-in-chief of Russia’s Channel One, has been hospitalized in Paris under suspicion of poisoning. The incident has prompted an investigation by the city’s prosecutor’s office. Ovsyannikova gained international attention after interrupting a live broadcast of the Vremya program with an anti-war poster on March 14, 2022. She has been a vocal critic of Russia’s actions in Ukraine and has faced legal repercussions for her stance.
On the afternoon of October 12, 2023, Ovsyannikova was leaving her Parisian apartment when she felt unwell. She touched a railing or door handle and noticed a powdery substance. Soon after, she experienced dizziness and collapsed. The police were alerted, and Ovsyannikova suggested that she might have been poisoned due to her political views. However, Christophe Deloire, the head of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), contradicted this claim. He stated that Ovsyannikova had not mentioned poisoning and that her condition had improved by the afternoon.
According to Le Parisien, investigators are currently examining samples of the unknown powder and inspecting Ovsyannikova’s apartment. The situation is being taken very seriously by both the police and the justice system.
Ovsyannikova had previously worked as an independent correspondent for the German publication Die Welt after leaving Channel One. She returned to Moscow in the summer of 2022 and continued her anti-war activities. She was fined multiple times and was under house arrest until October 9, 2023. Her husband reported that she had fled with their daughter on October 1, and she has not returned to Russia since. She was sentenced in absentia to 8.5 years in prison at the beginning of October, as reported by Russian RTVI.
The incident has raised several questions about the safety of journalists and political dissidents, especially those who have sought refuge in other countries. It also brings into focus the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, and how individuals who speak out against the conflict are treated. An article from ARAB NEWS mentioned that after initial tests, Ovsyannikova stated she had not been poisoned, but the sudden deterioration of her health led French police to investigate the matter.
The case of Marina Ovsyannikova bears unsettling similarities to that of Alexei Navalny, a prominent Russian opposition leader who was poisoned with a nerve agent in August 2020. Navalny’s poisoning was widely attributed to the Russian government, although Moscow has consistently denied any involvement. This incident is part of a troubling pattern in Russia, where anti-establishment figures, journalists, and political dissidents have been targeted in mysterious circumstances, often resulting in their death or severe illness. The use of poisoning as a method to silence critics raises serious questions about the lengths to which the Russian government will go to suppress opposition, further eroding the already fragile state of democracy and freedom of speech in the country. The Navalny case has been extensively covered by international media, including a detailed investigation by BBC.
This pattern of targeting anti-establishment individuals is not new in Russia. A number of high-profile figures have met mysterious ends, either through poisoning or other means. The Navalny incident, along with the recent case involving Ovsyannikova, adds to the growing list of anti-establishment figures who have been mysteriously targeted, raising international concerns about the safety of dissidents and the state of democracy in Russia.
The incident involving Marina Ovsyannikova is a poignant reminder of the risks that journalists and political activists face, even when they are miles away from the conflicts they report on or oppose.
