Russia ahs been widely condemned for targeting both civilians and journalists during its invasion of Ukraine.
Keystone / Roman Pilipey
The Swiss foreign ministry has berated Russia for targeting the media during its invasion of Ukraine. Several reporters have complained of being attacked by Russian forces, including a Swiss journalist who was injured and robbed this week.
Russia has placed heavy restrictions on media reporting of the invasion and has passed a law threatening to jail journalists for 15 years if they criticise the military action. Several foreign news outlets have stopped operating within Russia as a result.
“Switzerland condemns the tightening of restrictions on freedom of expression and media freedom in Russia – including the blocking of social media and websites of independent media. Any form of disinformation must be rejected,” read a foreign ministry tweet on Tuesday.
The tweet also condemned the treatment of journalists in Ukraine by Russian armed forces. “Switzerland is also concerned about attacks on media workers in Ukraine and calls for compliance with international humanitarian law and human rights.”
A passport, 3,000 euros in cash, personal belongings, a helmet, photographic equipment and a laptop were allegedly taken from him.
Even before the Ukraine invasion Russia was ranked 150th out of 180 in a press freedom index by the organisation Reporters Without Borders. Since the conflict, social media such as Twitter and Facebook have been blocked in Russia.
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
Swiss canton coordinates donations for landslide destroyed village
This content was published on
The Swiss canton of Valais to form committee to coordinate CHF 57.4 million donations for village destroyed by a landslide.
Body of Blatten landslide victim found and identified
This content was published on
The body of 64-year-old man, who has been missing since part of the Brich glacier collapsed on the Swiss village of Blatten has been found.
Swiss watch industry calls for ‘clear solution’ with US
This content was published on
Federation of the Watch Industry calls for clear solution to tariff threat and a swift agreement between Bern and Washington.
Swiss youngsters illegally obtain alcohol in a quarter of test purchases
This content was published on
In a quarter of all alcohol test purchases last year, young people in Switzerland were able to obtain beer, wine or spirits illegally.
Switzerland listed as ‘unfriendly’ country by Russia
This content was published on
Moscow published the list on Monday after being hit by Western financial sanctions. All corporate deals with companies and individuals from the so-called “unfriendly countries” now have to be approved by a government commission, according to Reuters. The list follows a presidential decree on March 5 allowing the Russian government, companies and citizens to temporarily…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.