Jailed Russian student activist Dmitry Ivanov beaten and threatened with rape by prison guard

Dmitry Ivanov, a student activist who was jailed last year for anti-war posts he made on his Telegram channel, has been severely beaten by a prison guard, according to his lawyer, Maria Eismont.

“The guard struck him numerous times with a baton on his head and ribs, handcuffed him tightly (leaving bruises on his wrists), and threatened to rape him,” Eismont told journalists. In addition, Ivanov told reportedly his lawyer, the guard tried to dip his head in a prison toilet.

According to a Telegram channel created to support Ivanov, the assault was retribution for an January 18 incident in which Ivanov refused to let a guard handcuff him and asked for “two more minutes” to listen to a conversation about his case between Eismont and a judge.