This interview was originally published by the French newspaper Libération on April 11, 2026. It has been translated into English and republished with permission.
On Thursday, April 9, Moscow police carried out a 13-hour search of the renowned Novaya Gazeta newspaper’s offices, where investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya worked until her murder in 2006.
At the same time, columnist Oleg Roldugin was arrested at his home and placed in pre-trial detention on charges of illegal gathering and use of personal information.
Meanwhile, former Novaya Gazeta editor-in-chief and 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov — who continues to reside in Moscow despite mounting pressure and attacks on him and his newspaper — was in Paris as part of a campaign in support of political prisoners in Russia.
Libération: On what grounds was your journalist arrested under charges of ‘illegal use and storage of personal data’? What does that mean?
