21:20 Yesterday The Russian intelligence service FSB has arrested seven people suspected of trying to kill two prominent journalists. The five minors and two adult men allegedly planned to kill Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of Russian state television RT, and Ksenia Sobchak, a well-known TV presenter.
Russia says Ukraine is behind the assassination plot . Interfax, Russia's state news agency, claims those arrested admitted to the FSB that the order for the killings came from Kyiv and that they would receive 1.5 million Russian rubles (just under $15,000) per murder.
A court in Moscow has given permission to detain the seven at least until September 14. They are suspected of 'attempted murder motivated by nationalistic hatred'.
It would not be the first time that Russian media figures have been targeted . Earlier, a well-known journalist and a blogger were killed in bomb attacks. Both openly supported the invasion of Ukraine. A nationalist writer narrowly survived an attack on his car.
Moscow repeatedly blamed Ukraine. Kyiv denies any involvement, saying the incidents are a result of internal settlements in Russia. The Ukrainian authorities have not yet responded to these arrests.
