Today’s news / Russia charges Eurovision winner Jamala

Russia charges Eurovision winner Jamala

Russia on Wednesday indicted Jamala, the Ukrainian winner of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2016, arresting her in absentia for spreading “false information” about the Russian army. Shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine last year, the Russian government banned criticism of the military attack. Thousands of Russians were later convicted for agitating and protesting against the war. In a statement Wednesday from the Moscow prosecutor’s office, Jamala is accused of posting a video on social media spreading lies about the Russian invasion. It says that Jamala is motivated by “national hatred” against the Russian army and she will be arrested if she sets foot on Russian soil. 40-year-old Jamala’s full name is Susana Jamaladinova. She is a Ukrainian citizen. She won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2016 with her song “1944” about the Soviet Union’s deportation of the Crimean Tartars. /ritzau/