News Feed

Media: Man throws training grenade at BBC Russian service journalists in Riga

2 min read
Media: Man throws training grenade at BBC Russian service journalists in Riga
Overview of the city of Riga with Cathedral of the Nativity on June 20, 2022. (Britta Pedersen/picture alliance via Getty Images)

An unknown attacker threw a training grenade at BBC News Russian Service journalists holding a party at a bar in central Riga on the evening of Dec. 23, according to independent Russian news outlet Novaya Gazeta, citing a witness report.

The BBC News Russian Service relocated from Moscow to the Latvian capital after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, along with other international bureaus such as Deutsche Welle and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

The BBC Russian News Service has not yet officially reported on the attack. The Kyiv Independent has reached out for comment.

The attack reportedly occurred after 11 p.m. when the BBC journalists were among the few people left in the bar.

A witness told Novaya Gazeta that a man reportedly opened the front door and threw a training grenade into the room, stunning those inside.

No casualties were reported, and the police came to the scene, according to Novaya Gazeta.

The man then fled in a black BMW, and the journalists were able to note the car's license plate number.

"The journalists believe that the attack is related to their professional activities," Novaya Gazeta said.

The Latvian Police released a statement on Dec. 24 that two people had been detained in connection with the case, but that "the motive was a personal conflict in this bar."

"There is no indication that the incident was related to the presence of journalists there," according to the police.

Russia passed sweeping censorship laws in March 2022 that essentially criminalized any criticism of the invasion or contradiction of Russian propaganda.

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin then signed amendments to the Russian Criminal Code in March 2023 that introduced harsher punishments for "discrediting participants" of Moscow's all-out war against Ukraine.

Bild: Russia may attempt to attack Europe next winter, European intelligence source says
European intelligence suggests that Russia may launch an attack on Europe during the winter of 2024-2025 if the United States finds itself “without a leader” following the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the German tabloid Bild reported on Dec. 23, citing an anonymous European intelligence source.
Article image
Avatar
Elsa Court

Audience Development Manager

Elsa Court is the audience development manager at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a news editor at the Kyiv Independent and was an intern at the Kyiv Post in 2018. She has a Master’s in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from Utrecht University. Elsa is originally from the UK.

Read more
News Feed
Show More