Wall Street Journal Journalists And Former US Marines Freed In Prisoner Swap

JAKARTA - An imprisoned US Wall Street Journal (WSJ) journalist, Evan Gershkovich, and former US Marine Paul Whelan were among 26 prisoners from the US, Russia and a number of their allies who were released in the tahaan exchange.

The Turkish presidency explained that 10 detainees, including two minors, had been transferred to Russia, 13 to Germany and three to the United States. Also involved in this exchange are Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Belarus.

Turkish intelligence announced previously it was coordinating a broad exchange of detainees, signaling a massive exchange between Russia and the United States is underway.

Our organization has taken on a major mediation role in this exchange operation, which is the most comprehensive operation in the last period, the National Intelligence Agency (MIT) said.

Both the Kremlin and the White House declined to comment when asked about the possible exchange.

The exchange is the largest exchange of prisoners since the Cold War. In the last major exchange in 2010, there were 14 prisoners exchanged.

In December 2022, Russia exchanged US basketball star Brittney Griner, who was sentenced to nine years for possessing a vape cartridge filled with cannabis oil in its trunk, with arms trader Viktor Bout, who served 25 years in the US.

Among those who took part in Thursday's exchange was Vadim Krasikov, a colonel at Russia's FSB security service who served a life sentence in Germany for killing a Chechen-Georgian dissident exiled to a park in Berlin, who President Vladimir Putin said he wanted to return.

Rico Krieger, a German who was sentenced to death in Belarus on charges of terrorism, on Tuesday was forgiven by President Alexander Lukashenko, Putin's close ally.

He was also among those released, along with opposition Russian politician Ilya Yashin, Turkey said.

Reuters footage shows Russian government planes landing in the Turkish capital, Ankara.

Whelan and Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Russian-UK dissident, both jailed in Russia, have suddenly disappeared from view in recent days, according to their lawyers.

At least seven Russian dissidents were suddenly removed from their prisons.