Russian state TV correspondent detained in Kiev is being deported from Ukraine

Update: Ukrainian officials announced on August 30 that they detained and will deport Pervyi Kanal (Channel One) correspondent Anna Kurbatova. Calling her a “Russian propagandist,” Ukrainian National Security Agency spokesperson Elena Gitlyanska stated in a Facebook post that the Ukrainian government doesn't kidnap people. Pervyi Kanal initially described Kurbatova's detainment as an “abduction.”

Rossiya-24 reported that Kurbatova “was taken in an unknown direction” somewhere in the city’s center. Kurbatova’s last televised segment aired on August 29.

According to the tabloid Life, Kurbatova had previously received threats. On August 26, her personal information was added to the doxing website Mirotvorets (Peacekeeper) for “anti-Ukrainian propaganda, the manipulation of socially significant information, and biased descriptions of events.”

According to Kurbatova’s Vkontakte page, she was born in Stavropol. Until August 2017, Pervyi Kanal had only ever published her segments on regional issues. It wasn’t until August 24 that she started reporting from Kiev, appearing in five reports on Ukraine’s Independence Day and two reports on the deportation of Spanish journalists.