Russian journalist captured, beaten, and released in the middle of nowhere in eastern Ukraine

Separatists from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR) in the east of Ukraine captured Russian journalist Pavel Kanygin of Novaya Gazeta on June 16 and handed him over to Russian security services (FSB). According the journalist, they checked his documents and released him “in the middle of a field.”

Kanygin told the newspaper Kommersant that after he was detained, he was beaten. According to the latest reports, he has been brought to the Russia-Ukraine border and is going to be sent to Russia.

Pavel Kanygin is a Novaya Gazeta a special correspondent who has recently done a lot of reporting on Ukraine. He interviewed Russian citizens captured in Ukraine and talked to residents of a town where, according to Russian BUK manufacturer Almaz-Antei, the missile that shot down flight MH17 had been deployed.

Novaya Gazeta learned that their correspondent, Pavel Kanygin, had been detained in the east of Ukraine from a man named Igor Mikhailovich. According to Igor Mikhailovich, Kanygin tested positive for drugs. The chief editor of Novaya Gazeta stated that this was a lie.