Palina Pitkevich

Affiliated media: Media IQ, Journalist

Incident date: March 7, 2025

Attack type:

• Court trial

Who attacked: Authorities

Source: Belarusian Association of Journalists

Location: Belarus, Minsk

Additional information:

Hearings in the criminal case against journalist Polina Pitkevich have begun at the Minsk City Court. Following several court sessions, Judge Svetlana Cherepanova found the journalist guilty of “participation in an extremist formation” (under Part 3 of Article 361-1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus) and sentenced her to three years’ imprisonment to be served in a general-regime penal colony, also imposing a substantial fine. Palina Pitkevich was accused of collaborating with the online outlet MediaIQ. As became known on the eve of the trial, the journalist had been detained as early as 6 June 2024 and held in custody until the court proceedings. The Belarusian KGB designated the Media IQ project an “extremist formation” only later, on 18 June. Pitkevich was named by law enforcement officers, among others, as a participant in this media project.