Russia Prosecutors Ban Investigative News Site Proekt

(AFP) — Russian prosecutors on Thursday banned Proekt, one of the country's last independent media outlets specializing in investigations, while several of its journalists were declared "foreign agents."

The outlet was labeled an "undesirable organisation" because "its activities pose a threat to the foundations of the constitutional order and security of the Russian Federation," the Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement.

The Justice Ministry separately added Proekt's chief editor Roman Badanin and four of its journalists to its list of "foreign agents."

Groups or individuals identified as "foreign agents" in Russia must disclose their sources of funding and label publications with the relevant tag or face fines.

The "undesirable organisation" tag is reserved for foreign groups and allows authorities to ban their work in the country.

Russians also risk fines or prison time for working with "undesirable" groups.

In its statement, the Prosecutor General's Office listed Proekt as a U.S. organization. 

Badanin founded Proekt after studying at Stanford University in the United States.

Since 2018 the outlet has published a number of high-profile investigations into the Russian elite, in some cases claiming to show how family members are used to hide wealth. 

The moves against Proekt come just weeks after Russian police raided the homes of Badanin and two of the outlet's journalists at the end of June and with authorities piling pressure on independent media. 

Two Russian-language news outlets, VTimes and Meduza, have been hit with the "foreign agent" tag in recent months, with VTimes then shutting down.

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