20 years since Anna Politkovskaya's murder, but the mastermind remains unknown

The journalist was shot and killed in the elevator of her apartment building. 20 years have passed, but who the main mastermind behind the crime was remains unknown.

On October 7, 2006, Anna Politkovskaya, a journalist for the "Novaya gazeta" publication, was shot dead in the elevator of the apartment building where she lived in Moscow. She was 48 years old.

Politkovskaya was one of Russia's prominent investigative journalists, primarily covering the war in Chechnya and its consequences. She wrote articles about human rights violations, torture, extrajudicial executions, corruption, and abuse of office. During her professional career, she faced threats and pressure on multiple occasions.

The murder was followed by a long investigation and court trials. Russian courts found six people guilty of involvement in the crime. Among them were organizers and perpetrators of the murder. However, the court verdicts did not identify who ordered the crime.

In 2018, the European Court of Human Rights also concluded that the investigation into Politkovskaya's murder was not sufficiently effective. The court noted that Russia had violated the procedural aspect of its obligations to protect human life.

Why is this event coming back to the agenda right now?

October 7, 2026 marks 20 years since the assassination of Anna Politkovskaya. On this occasion, the European Union issued an official statement calling on Russia to conduct an effective, independent, and transparent investigation, and to bring all persons involved in the crime to justice.

The statement also mentioned the fate of Sergei Khadzhikurbanov, who was sentenced in the murder case. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2014, but it was revealed that he was pardoned by the Russian president in 2023 after participating in the war in Ukraine. The European Union emphasized that this situation raises serious questions regarding accountability.

20 years have passed, but the main question remains open. Although individuals involved in the murder have been convicted, who ordered the death of Anna Politkovskaya has not been officially determined. The European Union is also calling on Russia to fully shed light on this case.