Russia's Supreme Court banned the country's only anti-war party, Yabloko, from the ballot
When 18-year-old Karina learnt the party she supported ahead of her first parliamentary election in Russia was barred from contesting, she was shocked, but also surprised by what happened next.
Russia’s Supreme Court on Monday banned the country’s only anti-war party, Yabloko, from the ballot, a decision that was met with “Shame!” chants from around a hundred supporters gathered in front of the building.
“I was surprised by how many people there were. I hadn’t seen such large political gatherings — specifically opposition ones – since 2022,” Karina told AFP at Yabloko’s headquarters in Moscow.
After it launched a full-scale offensive in its neighbour Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has ratcheted up repression at home to levels unseen since the era of the Soviet Union.
