Payam Javan: A Russian court has extended the detention of Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva for two more months, pending trial. The case is widely viewed as part of the Kremlin’s crackdown on dissent and free speech.

Kurmasheva, an editor for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was charged with failing to register as a foreign agent and spreading “false information” about the Russian military. She faces up to five years in prison if convicted.

The court in Tatarstan rejected appeals for house arrest. International human rights groups condemn her arrest as part of the broader effort to stifle free speech in Russia. This follows a pattern of increased crackdowns on critics and journalists since President Vladimir Putin’s deployment of troops to Ukraine in 2022.

Kurmasheva is the second U.S. journalist detained in Russia in the past year, after Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was arrested in March on espionage charges.