• Maria Ponomarenko, a Russian journalist, was sentenced to six years in prison.
• For posting on social media about a deadly attack by Russian warplanes on a Ukrainian theatre.
• She is one of a growing number of Russian dissidents imprisoned for criticising Ukraine’s war.

Maria Ponomarenko, a Russian journalist, was sentenced to six years in prison for posting on social media about a deadly attack by Russian warplanes on a Ukrainian theatre.

The court in Barnaul, Siberia, found her guilty of spreading “fake news” under laws enacted to suppress dissent over the invasion of Ukraine.

She was also barred from working as a journalist for the next five years.

When the Mariupol theatre was bombed last March, hundreds of civilians were killed.

Ponomarenko was arrested last April, weeks after the bombing, for claiming that Russian warplanes carried out the attack, despite the Russian defense ministry’s denial.

She is one of a growing number of Russian dissidents imprisoned for criticizing Ukraine’s war.

When Russian fighter jets bombed the theatre, 1,200 civilians were inside seeking refuge. According to Ukrainian authorities, 300 people were killed, but an Associated Press investigation found that the number was closer to 600. A large number of the bodies were discovered in the basement.

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