A Russian operative under the supervision of one of the Kremlin's main intelligence services has been charged with recruiting political groups in the United States to advance pro-Russia propaganda, including during the invasion of Ukraine, the Justice Department said Friday.
Prosecutors say Ionov in 2015 directed the group to post a petition titled “Petition on Crime of Genocide against African People in the United States." The change.org petition notes America’s history of slavery and denial of civil rights for Black people. It argues the U.S. government still fails “to protect our health and well-being as expected under full citizenship” and inflicts “state or state-supported violence and terror on us.
Anai said her organization had never received money from Ionov or any other members of the Russian intelligence service “Their premise is these were Russian campaigns. It’s a really insulting statement,” Anai said. “It was the Black community that ran the campaigns in our own interests. It’s an insulting notion that Black people can’t do anything for ourselves.”
The Treasury Department also announced sanctions against Ionov Friday, accusing him of giving money to organizations that he and Russian intelligence services thought would create a social or political disturbance in the U.S.
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