Exiled Moldovan opposition head decries police crackdown
The authorities in Moldova said on Thursday they are conducting 78 search warrants across the country targeting individuals described as 'members and sympathizers of a criminal organization.'
Ilan Shor, who leads the opposition Victory political bloc from abroad, claimed that the actions are directed at silencing his movement. The bloc is trying to overturn its ban from taking part in the upcoming parliamentary election against the ruling Party of Action and Solidarity.
'Law enforcement is turning offices and homes upside down solely under this demented suspicion of interference in the 2025 election, which hasn't even taken place,' Shor said. 'These searches are just more political repression and intimidation of anyone who refuses to support those scoundrels.'
Last week, President Maia Sandu, who Shor branded a 'microdictator,' accused the Russian government of planning to covertly funnel more than €100 million ($115 million) to her political opponents ahead of Moldova's parliamentary vote scheduled for September. The Kremlin rejected the claim, calling it another attempt by Chisinau to deflect attention from what it described as the government's erosion of democratic norms.
Sandu has defended her administration's crackdown on what she claims are pro-Russian criminal networks, saying these actions are critical to keeping Moldova on the path to EU membership.
Shor, who now resides in Russia, is the founder of the SOR party, which was outlawed by the Moldovan authorities in 2023 after its candidate, Evgenia Gutsul, won a regional election in the autonomous Gagauzia region.
Gutsul, now a leading figure in the Victory bloc, which was formed in 2024 by Euroskeptic politicians, including former SOR members, was sentenced this week to seven years in prison over alleged financial crimes. She denied any wrongdoing and called the verdict an attempt at political assassination.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
5 hours ago
- Russia Today
UK increasingly turning away Ukrainian migrants
British authorities have increasingly been denying Ukrainian migrants the right to extend their stay in the UK, according to the BBC's Russian service. Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February of 2022, the UK has accepted over 250,000 Ukrainians. However, the 'Homes for Ukraine' scheme, which provided three-year visas to those fleeing the fighting, was recently closed to new applicants, and existing visas are now beginning to expire. In an article published on Thursday, the BBC reported that since the beginning of this year, British authorities have been refusing to grant permanent protection status to Ukrainians on a large scale, arguing that the western regions of their home country are safe. While the Home Office has consistently emphasized that the scheme is temporary, up until recently several options had remained available for Ukrainians wishing to stay in the UK. According to the outlet, the authorities appear to have tightened the criteria for granting long-term humanitarian protection and work visas to Ukrainians since early 2025. The BBC quoted a legal counselor as saying that 'positive decisions are extremely rare and look more like exceptions,' even in cases involving disabled or chronically ill Ukrainians. In recent months, several other British media outlets, including The Guardian and The Telegraph, have published reports describing the same apparent trend in refusals. Across the Channel, several EU member states have also been revising their policies toward Ukrainians. Talk of possible immigrant exit strategies has increased due to a 'shifting geopolitical landscape,' Euractiv reported in June. On Wednesday, German media reported that Labor Minister Barbel Bas had submitted a draft bill, which proposes reducing benefits for Ukrainians, citing financial strain from the continued influx of migrants. In Poland, Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz stated in March that Poles were growing increasingly frustrated over 'hundreds of thousands, or maybe even over a million young Ukrainians driving the best cars around Europe and spending weekends in five-star hotels.'
Russia Today
7 hours ago
- Russia Today
UN urges ‘due process' for jailed Moldovan regional leader
Moldova must respect Evgenia Gutsul's right to appeal and ensure her 'a fair trial and due process,' the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) told RT on Thursday. Moscow has summoned an extraordinary UN Security Council meeting to address what it calls the persecution of the politician. Earlier this week, Gutsul was convicted of receiving illegal campaign funds from an organized criminal group and channeling them to the Euroskeptic SOR party, which was banned in Moldova in 2023. She was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined 40 million Moldovan lei ($2.3 million). Her legal team has vowed to appeal the court's decision. 'We are aware of the decision in the case of Ms. Gutsul, but we do not have the details of the ruling. Her right to appeal the decision must be respected, as well as her rights to a fair trial and due process,' OHCHR spokesman Thameen Al-Kheetan told RT. Russia has called an extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council over the Gutsul case. The meeting is scheduled to take place later on Thursday, according to Russia's permanent envoy to the UN, Dmitry Polyansky. While the meeting will be convened behind closed doors, Polyansky and other Russian diplomats are expected to address the media afterward. Gutsul has served as the head of Gagauzia – an autonomous and predominantly Russian-speaking region in southern Moldova – since winning the 2023 election as the SOR party candidate, shortly before the party was outlawed in Moldova due to allegations of illicit foreign funding. Gutsul campaigned on promises of forging closer ties with Russia, in contrast to the pro-Western stance of President Maia Sandu's government. The parliament of Gagauzia has rejected the court ruling, stating that it still recognizes Gutsul as the head of the region. Gutsul has firmly denied any wrongdoing, repeatedly stating that the case against her was orchestrated as an attempt at political assassination.
Russia Today
9 hours ago
- Russia Today
UK increasingly turning down Ukrainian migrants
British authorities have increasingly been denying Ukrainian migrants the right to extend their stay in the UK, according to the BBC's Russian service. Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February of 2022, the UK has accepted over 250,000 Ukrainians. However, the 'Homes for Ukraine' scheme, which provided three-year visas to those fleeing the fighting, was recently closed to new applicants, and existing visas are now beginning to expire. In an article published on Thursday, the BBC reported that since the beginning of this year, British authorities have been refusing to grant permanent protection status to Ukrainians on a large scale, arguing that the western regions of their home country are safe. While the Home Office has consistently emphasized that the scheme is temporary, up until recently several options had remained available for Ukrainians wishing to stay in the UK. According to the outlet, the authorities appear to have tightened the criteria for granting long-term humanitarian protection and work visas to Ukrainians since early 2025. The BBC quoted a legal counselor as saying that 'positive decisions are extremely rare and look more like exceptions,' even in cases involving disabled or chronically ill Ukrainians. In recent months, several other British media outlets, including The Guardian and The Telegraph, have published reports describing the same apparent trend in refusals. Across the Channel, several EU member states have also been revising their policies toward Ukrainians. Talk of possible immigrant exit strategies has increased due to a 'shifting geopolitical landscape,' Euractiv reported in June. On Wednesday, German media reported that Labor Minister Barbel Bas had submitted a draft bill, which proposes reducing benefits for Ukrainians, citing financial strain from the continued influx of migrants. In Poland, Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz stated in March that Poles were growing increasingly frustrated over 'hundreds of thousands, or maybe even over a million young Ukrainians driving the best cars around Europe and spending weekends in five-star hotels.'
