Savchenko Begins 'Dry' Hunger Strike
Ukrainian military pilot Nadia Savchenko, who has been sentenced by a Russian court to 22 years in prison, has started a "dry" hunger strike, refusing to consume both food and water.
Savchenko's lawyer, Mark Feigin, said on April 6 that his client's demand is "her immediate return to Ukraine."
Savchenko, 34, was sentenced on March 22 on charges including complicity in the killing of two Russian journalists in eastern Ukraine in 2014. The sentence came into effect on April 5.
She refused to appeal the verdict and sentence, saying she does not recognize the legitimacy of the probe against her.
Savchenko denies the charges and has gone on several hunger strikes protesting her detention and the court case.
Savchenko said she was seized in eastern Ukraine in June 2014 while fighting with a volunteer battalion against Russia-backed separatists and taken to Russia illegally.
Based on reporting by UNIAN and TASS
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