Doctor accused of criticizing Russia’s war in Ukraine is convicted and given over 5 years in prison

Associated Press

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A doctor accused of criticizing Russia’s war in Ukraine in front of a patient was convicted of spreading false information about the military and sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison. It’s the latest example of an unrelenting Kremlin crackdown on dissent. Dr. Nadezhda Buyanova, 68, was arrested in February after the mother of a patient reported the pediatrician to authorities. Buyanova was alleged to have told the woman’s son that his father, a Russian soldier who apparently was killed in Ukraine, was a legitimate target for Kyiv’s troops. Buyanova, who was born in Ukraine, denied the accusation. She alleged that her accuser fabricated the story out of animosity toward Ukrainians.