Russian journalist's murder trial to begin
Monday, 17 Nov 2008 09:35
Image courtesy of Novaya Gazeta and Human Rights in Russia (www.hro.org)
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The trial into the murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya is due to begin today.
Ms Politkovskaya was discovered shot dead outside her home in Moscow with a pistol and four bullets lying next to her in October 2006.
Since then the contract killer and the person who ordered her death have not yet been discovered.
But Pavel Ryaguzov, a security service employee, and three others may go on trial today.
It is yet to be decided whether the trial will take place behind closed doors or not, as material to be revealed may compromise Russian security interests.
The Kremlin's critics believe this may be used as cover in a trial which many do not expect to shed much light on what appeared to be a contract killing.
Ms Politkovskaya's independent-minded reporting earned her many enemies in power. Her criticism of the Chechnyan war, which she covered for the Novaya Gazeta newspaper, won her no favours with former president Vladimir Putin's administration.
It was widely believed that during the Beslan school siege of August and September 2004, in which the Russian military failed to prevent the deaths of 333 hostages and police, the Kremlin poisoned Ms Politkovskaya, preventing her from covering the conflict.