Kremlin orders propagandists not to talk about crimes of Russian soldiers returning from front lines

The administration of the Russian president gave new instructions to the state and pro-government Russian media, asking them not to publish news about the crimes of Russians who returned from the war in Ukraine – in particular, this concerns mercenaries and pardoned prisoners.

Source: Meduza, Latvia-based Russian outlet, with reference to employees of outlets close to the authorities

Details: The sources clarified that they had not been sent such instructions before. Some pro-government media were happy to publish such news, because "crime always provides good traffic, and the mention of special military operation (as the war against Ukraine is called in Russia – ed.) in the title warms up the audience, makes the news more clickable."

For example, in mid-October, one of the outlets reported that a former mercenary of the Wagner Private Military Company returned from the war and stabbed his disabled grandmother for money.

A source close to the president’s office explained that restrictions on such news are "about time so that the Russians do not consider the fighters potential criminals, and do not fear their return."

He also noted that truly "patriotic journalists" understood the "inappropriate nature" of such publications even before the Kremlin's recommendations.

In turn, a source close to the Russian presidential administration emphasised that there allegedly is "a desire to show that really polite, sympathetic and caring people are returning from the front."

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