File photo of Novaya Gazeta editor-in-chief and 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov speaking to reporters outside the independent Russian newspaper’s office in Moscow. (AFP pic)MOSCOW: Independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta announced Friday that it was closing, citing pressure from authorities who recently searched the home of its senior editor and earlier this year detained one of its journalists.
"Novaya Gazeta is ceasing to exist," editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov said in a video statement published on YouTube. "The Russian authorities -- the Russian special services -- have forced the editorial team to end its work."
Russia has introduced near-Soviet levels of censorship since sending troops to Ukraine, pushing the vast majority of independent journalists into exile.
