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"We now know for sure that the great fire of the Marywilska shopping centre in Warsaw was caused by arson ordered by the Russian special services," Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X. "Some of the perpetrators have already been detained, all the others are identified and searched for."

This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.

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Russia's State Duma increases punishments for 'discrediting' Russian military

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Russia's State Duma, the lower house of parliament, reported on March 14 that it had ratified amendments to the Russian Criminal Code introducing harsher punishments for "discrediting participants" of Moscow's all-out war against Ukraine.

The new punishments include a fine of up to 5 million rubles (about $66,450), five years of correctional or forced labor (or seven years for "repeated discrediting that led to dangerous consequences"), as well as a sentence of 15 years in prison.

According to the amendments, Russians could also be punished for discrediting "volunteer formations, organizations or individuals who contribute to the fulfillment of the tasks assigned to the Armed Forces."

The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) labels irregular armed formations fighting in Ukraine — specifically the state-backed mercenary Wagner Group — as volunteers.

Russia's State Duma wrote that criminal punishment would be imposed if a person had already been charged with an administrative violation for similar actions within one year.

The Institute for the Study of War said on March 1 that "the Kremlin could use these amendments to promote self-censorship among select military bloggers whose constituencies are no longer needed for its force generation or crowdfunding campaigns, or whose criticisms have exceeded the Kremlin's tolerance for open criticism."

Reuters: Russian soldiers sexually abused a 4-year-old child, raped her mother in Kyiv Oblast
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We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.

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