Russia jails 19-year-old for nearly three years for condemning Ukraine conflict

Activist Darya Kozyreva, who is charged with repeatedly discrediting the Russian armed forces in the course of Russia-Ukraine military conflict, speaks her last words before the verdict announcement during a court hearing in Saint Petersburg, Russia, April 18, 2025. REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova

ST PETERSBURG (Reuters) - A Russian court handed down a prison sentence of nearly three years to Darya Kozyreva, a young activist who used 19th-century poetry and graffiti to protest the conflict in Ukraine.

A Reuters witness in the court on Friday said Kozyreva, 19, was found guilty of repeatedly "discrediting" the Russian army after she put up a poster with lines of Ukrainian verse on a public square and gave an interview to Sever.Realii, a Russian-language service of Radio Free Europe.