Russian government ordered murder of Chechen in Berlin, German court rules
Source: The Guardian
Russian government ordered murder of Chechen in Berlin, German court rules
Vadim Krasikov sentenced to life in prison for 2019 killing of Zelimkhan Khangoshvili in Berlin
Philip Oltermann in Berlin
@philipoltermann
Wed 15 Dec 2021 12.26 GMT
Germany’s new government is facing calls to stand up to the Kremlin after a Berlin court jailed a Russian man, 56, for life for the “painstakingly planned” assassination of a Chechen dissident in the German capital at the behest of the Russian authorities.
Zelimkhan “Tornike” Khangoshvili, 40, a Georgian citizen who fought against Russia during the second Chechen war in the early 2000s, was shot twice in the head at close range in the Kleiner Tiergarten, a park in central Berlin, in August 2019.
The killing sparked outrage in Germany and prompted the government to expel two Russian diplomats, leading to a reciprocal response by Moscow.
Wednesday’s verdict is likely to add pressure to Russian-German diplomatic relations, already under strain over a buildup of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine. The new German government’s response to the verdict will be seen as a first test for the chancellor, Olaf Scholz, and foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, who has vowed to champion human rights.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/15/germany-convicts-russian-man-of-of-chechen-separatist