Off color jokes, interpreted as criticism of Russia’s war against Ukraine, along with others that offended the religious feelings of Christians, landed a Russian standup comedian a lengthy prison term after he was convicted in a Moscow court. File photo by Stringer/EPA
A Moscow court sentenced Russian stand-up comedian Artemy Ostanin to five years and nine months in prison and a $4,000 fine after finding him guilty of telling jokes that incited hatred of Ukraine war veterans with life-changing injuries and insulted Christians’ faith.
Ostanin was sentenced on Wednesday for on-stage routines alleged to have included gags featuring a “legless skateboarder” in connection with the war in Ukraine and an imagined conversation with Jesus Christ in which Jesus relates a story that effectively states he was crucified for exposing the truth.
The prosecution alleged the slurs, which were allegedly made during two shows in early 2025, were part of a systematic effort and that Ostanin had formed an “organized criminal group” for the express purpose of writing and performing the material.
Footage shared online by military bloggers and pro-war groups placed a target on his back, leading to him being arrested on the Belarus border in March as he attempted to flee the country and delivered into the custody of Moscow’s Meshchansky District Court, where he has been held without bail ever since.
Ostanin denied that the disabled subject of his joke was a war veteran, saying that complainants from the Zov Naroda pro-war group had twisted it around.
He insisted he had made no mention of the war in his joke, saying “the rest is just fantasies of bloggers, and to my surprise, the federal media.”
At the final hearing, he did, however, apologize for any offense caused by the Jesus spoof and another about Jesus’ abs as he hung on the cross, but insisted he had not set out to offend anyone’s feelings.
Ostanin alleges he was beaten and threatened with having his throat cut by Belarusian security services with scans confirming he sustained a fractured spine at some point.
Authorities in Belarus deny mistreating Ostanin.
Ostanin’s case was the most recent illustration of the Kremlin’s crackdown against any criticism of Russia’s armed forces and the Ukraine war amid harsh censorship laws that make it a criminal offense to “discredit” the military, according to the New York Times.
The Russian government had arrested many thousands of people for even minor expressions of dissent, it added.
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Picketers hold signs outside at the entrance to Mount Sinai Hospital on Monday in New York City. Nearly 15,000 nurses across New York City are now on strike after no agreement was reached ahead of the deadline for contract negotiations. It is the largest nurses’ strike in NYC’s history. The hospital locations impacted by the strike include Mount Sinai Hospital, Mount Sinai Morningside, Mount Sinai West, Montefiore Hospital and New York Presbyterian Hospital. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo
