Ilya Vilyamovich Azar (russian: Илья Вильямович Азар; born June 29, 1984,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

) is a Russian journalist, special correspondent for

Novaya Gazeta ''Novaya Gazeta'' ( rus, Новая газета, t=New Gazette, p=ˈnovəjə ɡɐˈzʲetə) is an independent Russian newspaper known for its critical and investigative coverage of Russian political and social affairs. It is published in Mo ...

since 2017, former special correspondent for the online publication

Lenta.ru ''Lenta.ru'' (russian: Лента.Ру; stylised as LƐNTA.RU) is a Russian-language online newspaper. Based in Moscow, it is owned by Rambler Media Group. In 2013, the Alexander Mamut-owned companies "SUP Media" and "Rambler-Afisha" merged to ...

, and a former special correspondent for the

Meduza ''Meduza'' ( rus, Медуза, t=jellyfish) is a Russian- and English-language independent news website, headquartered in Riga. It was founded in 2014 by a group of former employees of the then-independent ''Lenta.ru'' news website. Free mob ...

project. He was a Member of the Council of Deputies of the Khamovniki District in Moscow. Azar was charged with organising opposition demonstrations demanding free elections to Moscow’s city legislature on September 8, 2019. In May 2020, he was arrested and jailed for 15 days for breaking protest laws during a protest against the detention of an campaigner against police corruption. Other journalists were subsequently arrested while protesting against Azar's arrest. He was also criticized by authorities of

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

for a text at Meduza describing local separatists. This led to blocking of Meduza in Kazakhstan. Azar is a two-time winner of the ''

Redkollegia ''Redkollegia'' () is an independent media award established by the '' Sreda Foundation'' headed by to support free professional journalism in Russia. The prize is awarded monthly to several authors. The organizers of the award believe that in ...

'' media award.

References

External links

Публикации на Slon.ru
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azar, Ilya Journalists from Moscow 1984 births Living people 21st-century Russian journalists Russian liberals Russian activists Russian Jews Meduza Novaya Gazeta Redkollegia award winners Higher School of Economics alumni