Kremlin Says Dozhd Staff Expelled From Reporters Pool For Organizing Illegal Rallies

Russian broadcaster Dozhd (also known as TV Rain) was engaged in organizing unauthorized rallies, which is incompatible with journalistic activity, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday, commenting on the recent decision to expel Dozhd reporters from the Kremlin pool of journalists

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th June, 2021) Russian broadcaster Dozhd (also known as tv Rain) was engaged in organizing unauthorized rallies, which is incompatible with journalistic activity, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday, commenting on the recent decision to expel Dozhd reporters from the Kremlin pool of journalists.

"I want to highlight that we made the decision not in connection with the protests' coverage. The protests were covered by all media. After all, media fulfill their task by covering events. We made this decision due to the fact that, unfortunately, the broadcaster did not cover but it called for, it acted as the organizer of illegal actions. This is a very important nuance," Peskov told reporters.

The official noted that the conclusion that Dozhd "called for illegal rallies de facto" could be made after watching the media's broadcast.

"This absolutely does not fit in with the profession of journalist, from our point of view," Peskov added.

Russia was swept with unauthorized rallies on January 23, January 31, and February 2 in support of jailed opposition figure Alexey Navalny, who was detained upon arrival in Moscow from Germany, where he was treated for alleged poisoning. Western countries have called for Navalny's immediate release and criticized Moscow's handling of the protests which resulted in clashes with police, detentions and arrests. In response, Moscow urged foreign critics to respect Russia's internal law and deal with its own domestic problems.