Anna Politkovskaya was such a fine journalist, so brave in afflicting the comfortable, that she was shot. Probably by her political enemies, which included her government. She was the 13th journalistic critic of the government to be shot down by contract killers during Putin’s reign. After the first sham trial led to nothing, the Russian Supreme Court ordered a retrial of defendants in the case, a trial that is now under way and in a brief adjournment.

BBC:

The suspected gunman, Rustam Makhmudov – brother of two of the other suspects – has still not been caught. And campaigners say it is those who ordered the killing that they really want to see in the dock.

The Supreme Court decision to order a retrial – taking place at the same military court in Moscow where the first trial was held – came after prosecutors appealed against the original not-guilty verdicts.

The process of the trial was also strongly criticised by Russian journalists and human rights groups.

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