#Arkady Babchenko

[starshinazapasadaily]

Какая прелесть

Опять «Абрамс», теперь уже на Красной площади (точнее, на её руинах)

Автор: Darius Abromaitis

[intriguingpeoplebyangelafloyd]

ARKADY BABCHENKO

ARKADY BABCHENKO

Born: 1977

Russian journalist who faked his own death

            Arkady Babchenko was a Russian media and television journalist. He was born in Moscow, Russia (USSR), his maternal grandmother is Jewish. In 1995, he was conscripted into the Russian army and served until 2000 in the North Caucasus. He published the book One Soldier’s War (2006) and afterwards worked as a war journalist.

            In 2012, a criminal case was initiated in Russia against Babchenko for ‘making public calls for mass riots’. In 2016 the Tupolev Tu-154 jetliner of the Russian Defence Ministry crashed into the Black Sea after taking off from Russia whilst on route to Syria. All 92 passengers and crew were killed, 64 of them were from the Russian choir. Babchenko wrote on Facebook that he had ‘no sympathy, no pity’ for the choir or journalists who died in the disaster. In a Facebook post he stated he wanted to remind his followers that Russia was indiscriminately bombing Aleppo in Syria including its children. During the backlash his residential address was revealed to the public and he started to receive threats and calls for him to be stripped of his Russian citizenship. Babchenko fled from Russia to Ukraine in February 2017

            Babchenko was reported to have been shot and killed in his Kyiv, Ukraine apartment on 29 May 2018.

            A day after faking his own death, he showed up at a press conference held by the SBU (Security Service of Ukraine). Babchenko and the SBU had collaborated to perform the fake execution and reasoned it was so they could catch those who were attempting to kill him and expose Russian agents. Babchenko and the SBU have been criticized for the stunt, however they stated it was necessary to gain evidence.

            In November 2019, Babchenko moved to Israel and wants to return to Ukraine in the future. After the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he made public defamation campaigns of Russian opposition figures using false information.

#arkadybabchenko

[npr]

An update from NPR’s earlier story

[hank-green-john-watson-emma]

This is amazing enough on its own, but it’s absolutely required viewing for anyone who knows anything about Sherlock Holmes.

[steamedtangerine]

In light of recent events in Russia, I'm reposting this old article about an event from 2018 that involved the "one that got away".

Irony dictated today that I should put in an old VCR tape (shut up! they still have good uses!) with some John Oliver on it (the same episode with the fake British royalty expert) that discussed this story right after hearing about another one of Putin's recent victims.

This joke about the assassination attempt jumped out at me:

Remember when this happened last year?

Did playing possum work for this Putin-critical journalist slated for killing?

It was believed Russia hired a Ukrainian fighter (for 30K) to assassinate the veteran journalist. Previously in Kiev, vocal critics of Vladimir Putin, journalist Pavel Sheremet and politician Denis Voronenkov, had been assassinated in 2016.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkady_Babchenko#Staged_death

According to SBU head Vasyl Hrytsak, those who had wanted to assassinate Babchenko had been planning to kill 30 people in Ukraine.[45] The SBU claimed to have discovered this plot when one of the men approached to kill Babchenko revealed the plot to the security services.[2] Allegedly several people, including Ukrainian war veterans, had been offered  for the contract killing.[2]

On 31 May a Ukrainian court had remanded Borys Herman in custody for allegedly having paid  to a hired hitman after the news of the “killing” broke. Herman said that he had had no intention of killing the reporter and that he had co-operated with the Ukrainian counterintelligence. (In turn, the prosecutor stated that Herman was not a “secret agent” at all.)[48][51] Borys Herman is a businessman working for a Ukrainian-German weapons company and he is a son of Lev Herman, known for his deep-rooted ties to a famous Russian criminal authority of Ukrainian origin, Semion Mogilevich, who has many alleged links to top Russian officials.[52] Herman mentioned Vyacheslav Pivovarnik as a direct contractor of the assassination. Pivovarnik is the Ukrainian citizen, who according to some sources[53] cooperated with the former deputy of the State Duma Sergey Shishkarev. His location was not established  immediately; there is the evidence that in February he left in an unknown direction.[54]

[gwydionmisha]

This was a bit of a wild ride.

[bittertwee]

[dragoni]

Trump’s hero, Putin, has his own way of suppressing dissent and those getting too close.

Arkady Babchenko, a Russian journalist critical of the Kremlin, has been killed in Kiev.

Mr Babchenko was shot at his home on Tuesday evening and died in an ambulance on the way to hospital. According to Anton Geraschenko, a Ukrainian politician with close links to the police and security services, the journalist had left his apartment to buy provisions, and was attacked on his return.

"When Arkady opened the door of his flat, the killer cowardly shot him in the back, firing several shots," he wrote on Facebook.

It was understood that his critical reporting of the wars in Ukraine and Syria had contributed to the elevated sense of danger. Russian state TV had been particularly forthright in criticising a blog post in which he expressed “indifference” for the deaths of “Russian military representatives” aboard an aircraft bound for Syria that crashed near Sochi.

Mr Babchenko’s death is the latest in a series of high-profile murders in Kiev. The 2016 assassination of investigative journalist Pavlo Sheremet remains unsolved, with no arrests or convincing investigation made. A report by the Committee to Protect Journalists criticised the Ukrainian authorities' "pushing [a] Russian narrative" in the case, despite "circumstantial evidence" suggesting a Ukrainian trace.

[starshinazapasadaily]

23/02/2000

[vindicar]

Based on original article by Arkady Babchenko.

Trauma of losing First World War. Perceived humiliation of having to rely on humanitarian aid of 1918, seen as being at opponents’ mercy. Trauma of losing first Cold War. Perceived humiliation of having to rely on 'Bush’s legs’, seen as being at opponent’s mercy.

Insane inflation, widespread devastation and poverty of 1920s. Use of USD as a substitute currency. Insane inflation, widespread devastation and powerty of 1990s. Use of USD as a substitute currency.

Slow recovery, growing feeling of power and desire for revanch. Hatred towards yesterdays winners, US specifically. Slow recovery, growing feeling of power and desire for revanch. Hatred towards yesterdays winners, West in general but US specifically.

Ethnic and political cleansing. Religious and political cleansing.

Creation of unofficial paramilitary groups supportibg the ruling party - the Sturmabteilung. Later, they were deemed disloyal and destroyed by SS and gestapo during Night of the Long Knives. Creation of unofficial paramilitary groups supportibg the ruling party - the pseudo-cossacs, “God’s Will” and such. At the same time, creation of loyal, highly centralized fighting force specializing on revolt/civil disorder suppression - Rosgvardia - as a potential counter to them.

Hosting Olympics of 1936 as a way to gain prestige, both outside and inside the country. Hosting Olympics of 2014 as a way to gain prestige, both outside and inside the country.

“Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer.” Introduction of the term “national-traitors”. “Without Putin, there can be no Russia.” Introduction of the term “national-traitors”.

Concentration camps for Jews. Filtration camps for migrants.

Annexion of Sudetenland, followed by insane rise of public support. Annexion of Crimea, followed by insane rise of public support.

Expedition corps sent to Africa. Armed forces doing something shady in Livan.

Other nations slowly realizing what they are dealing with. Cessation of aggressor appeasement policy, followed by economic sanctions in a containment attempt. Other nations slowly realizing what they are dealing with. Cessation of aggressor appeasement policy, followed by economic sanctions in a containment attempt. 

> YOU ARE HERE <

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

Ukraine: On the staged ‘murder’ of journalist Babchenko

And on the staged ‘murder’ of the journalist Babchenko which was yesterday reported by most media (blaming Russia). It turns out today that all three actors of that play worked for Ukrainian security service (SBU). 

The alleged killer - worked for SBU and claims that the security service offered him to play a ‘killer’ to reveal a paymaster as an alleged ‘Russian agent’. 

But the alleged paymaster claims that SBU offered him to play a ‘paymaster’ and hirer to ‘help the country’. He claims that he is a patriot and, as businessman, used to supply Ukrainian army. 

The allegedly killed journalist Babchenko claims that SBU offered him to be a sort of ‘bait’ for a killer. 

In other words, all three participants worked for SBU which tried to stage a play to blame Russia. Probably, the Skripal case in London inspired Ukraine’s security service to act similar way. 

The show and wave of ‘blame Russians’ should have lasted longer, while the ‘killed’ journalist would be hidden. I suppose that someone of the three main actors became too scared since this turned to be high-profile murder case on the global level. Someone of the three actors began to suspect that he would be really killed to hide evidences and revealed himself to the press. Therefore, the planned operation ‘blame Russians’ - failed.

[icymirss]

An "enemy of Putin" is attacked. Authorities immediately raise accusations against Russia and the Kremlin. Public condemnation follows. There are calls to sanction Russia. But the information is murky. The details don't make sense. Critical questions follow. After the while the "dead" come back from death. The above was the script followed in the Skripal affair. The "deadly nerve agent -- of a type developed by Russia" did not kill at all. Now a similar case happened.

[newsnomadblog]

Three stories/three days: Real journalism’s fight against fake news

Three stories/three days: Real journalism’s fight against fake news

01 June 2018 | Richard Sambrook | The Conversation

Three news stories in as many days have betrayed how little understood – or apparently respected – are some of the core principles which underline reputable journalism. For those who believe that trustworthy news and information – and strong institutions behind them – matter in a democracy it is a worrying sign. For the growing numbers of media…

[squirescreen]

How Russian Journalist Arkady Babchenko Faked His Own Death (HBO). A VICE News Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zl2xVC-V_o

[sparrowsarus]

jasmine for the ask game!

jasmine ⇢ do you have a movie or book you loved but will never watch/read again? One Soldier's War by Arkady Babchenko.

It was a really well written documentation of the Chechen Wars, from the perspective of someone who was in them--once, because he was drafted, and the second because he didn't know what else to do.

It was honest, compelling, terrifying, and heartbreaking. It was absolutely worthwhile. I highly recommend it to people.

I gave it away as soon as I finished it, and I will never read it again.