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World / Europe

Russian court jails 9 more Ukrainian sailors

Published: 28 Nov 2018 - 03:59 pm | Last Updated: 11 Nov 2021 - 01:55 am
Ukrainian ships are detained in Kerch Strait on November 25, 2018 in this still image from video released by Russian Federal Security Service November 27, 2018.

Ukrainian ships are detained in Kerch Strait on November 25, 2018 in this still image from video released by Russian Federal Security Service November 27, 2018.

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW:  Nine more Ukrainian sailors captured during Sunday’s confrontation with Russia in a strait next to Crimea have been sent to jail for two months by a Russian court.
A total of 24 Ukrainian servicemen, including two security service agents, were arrested on Sunday, when three Ukrainian naval vessels in the Black Sea tried to enter the Kerch Strait to reach the Sea of Azov.
Yesterday, 12 of them were sentenced to months in custody.
Today, nine more were jailed, while a pre-trial restrictions for three remaining sailors are not defined as they had been injured during the clash, hospitalized and could not be produced before the court.
Russia and Ukraine have been at loggerheads since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea after a controversial referendum.
Turkey, as well as the UN General Assembly, viewed the annexation as illegal.
Ukraine has also blamed Kremlin for separatist violence in eastern Ukraine, near the border with Russia.