Arkady Babchenko

Arkady Arkadyevich Babchenko (; born 18 March 1977) is a Russian print and television journalist. From 1995, Babchenko served in the communication corps in the North Caucasus while participating in the First Chechen War. He later volunteered for six months during the Second Chechen War. Since 2017 he has worked as a presenter for the Kyiv-based TV channel ATR. In 2006 he published the book One Soldier's War, about his experiences in Chechnya.

It was reported on 29 May 2018, that Babchenko had been shot dead in his home in Kyiv, Ukraine. The next day, he appeared in person at a press conference with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). The SBU said it had staged the murder in order to arrest assassins allegedly recruited by Russian security services. One of his grandfathers was born in Henichesk, Ukrainian SSR. #tag:ref|On 31 May 2018, it appeared that the fact that Babchenko's grandfather was born in the Ukrainian SSR might fast track Babchenko for Ukrainian citizenship.

Babchenko was an 18-year-old law student in 1995, when he was conscripted into the Russian Army. He served in signal troops during the First Chechen War and was discharged in 1997.

In 1999, Babchenko completed his bachelor of law degree at the Modern University for the Humanities. With the outbreak of the Second Chechen War, he rejoined the army as a volunteer. Babchenko commanded an AGS-17 grenade-launcher team and was discharged in 2000 with the rank of starshina. Over the next three years, Babchenko collaborated with multiple publications and television channels, though he struggled to maintain long-term positions. He later characterised his work at the state-owned RTR channel as producing "tabloid, lowbrow documentary stuff in jingoistic style."

During the mid-2000s, Babchenko worked as a taxi driver before joining Novaya Gazeta as a military correspondent. His tenure there was brief, ending in dismissal for what he described as "heedlessness." From 2006 to 2010, he edited Iskusstvo Voiny (The Art of War), a magazine featuring stories from veterans of post-Soviet conflicts. After it he was accused of looting by Georgian bloggers. David Sakvarelidze called him a war criminal.

Legal issues In March 2012, in an act of political persecution, a criminal case was initiated in Russia against Babchenko for "making public calls for mass riots" because of the publication of a post about the possible tactics of For Fair Elections movement protesters.

Ukraine In December 2016 Babchenko wrote on Facebook that he had "no sympathy, no pity" for members of the Alexandrov Ensemble choir and pro-government journalists who died in the 2016 Tu-154 plane crash near Sochi en route to Syria. Speaking to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Russian Service, Babchenko said that "we must be in one line; we must express sadness; we must appear sad – and anyone who doesn't must be destroyed." A report in the Czech online portal Aktualne read that Babchenko had arrived in the Czech Republic in February 2017, but left a little less than six months after he lost the hope of obtaining a residence permit.

Staged death International media reported on 29 May 2018 that Babchenko was assassinated as he returned to his apartment in Kyiv. In a press statement, the Kyiv Police stated that Babchenko could have been killed as a reprisal for his work as a journalist. Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman claimed Russia was responsible for the assassination. The head of Russia's Federal Security Service, Alexander Bortnikov, denied the involvement of Russia.

Babchenko meeting with (from left to right) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, SBU head Vasyl Hrytsak, and General Prosecutor of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko on 30 May 2018. The next day, Babchenko appeared alive and well on live Ukrainian television at a press conference held by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). Babchenko had collaborated with the SBU for a month, conducting a secret operation. According to the SBU, the murder had been staged to expose Russian agents. Previously in Kyiv, vocal critics of Vladimir Putin, journalist Pavel Sheremet and politician Denis Voronenkov, had been assassinated in 2016. Babchenko's wife said she knew her husband's death would be staged. who was engaged in preparations for the contract killing of Babchenko. The alleged assassin was reported to be helping the SBU with its investigation. According to SBU head Vasyl Hrytsak, those who had wanted to assassinate Babchenko had been planning to kill 30 people in Ukraine. The SBU claimed to have discovered this plot when one of the men approached to kill Babchenko revealed the plot to the security services. Babchenko and the Ukrainian authorities defended the operation, saying it was necessary to collect evidence. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko also rejected criticism of the sting operation, claiming that because of it "The whole world saw the real face of our enemy. It is not Ukraine you should condemn but Russia." Borys Herman is a businessman working for a Ukrainian-German weapons company and he is a son of Lev Herman, known for his deep-rooted ties to a famous Russian criminal authority of Ukrainian origin, Semion Mogilevich, who has many alleged links to top Russian officials. Herman mentioned Vyacheslav Pivovarnik as a direct contractor of the assassination. Pivovarnik is the Ukrainian citizen, who according to some sources cooperated with the former deputy of the State Duma Sergey Shishkarev. His location was not established; there was evidence that in February he left in an unknown direction. The trial in the case of the attempt on Babchenko was held behind closed doors. Boris German pleaded guilty and made a plea bargain, and on August 30, 2018, the Holosiivskyi District Court of Kyiv sentenced Herman to 4.5 years in prison. However, this was revealed to the public only two days later, by the head of the SBU Vasyl Hrytsak. The verdict came into force 30 days later, but the text of the judgment was not made public at that time. German's lawyer refused to comment on the verdict, as well as on the existence of a plea bargain. In November 2019, Herman was released, having served 1.5 years in prison.

Self-imposed exile In November 2019, Babchenko relocated to Israel as a response to the election of Volodymyr Zelenskyy as President of Ukraine in April 2019. After a period of vociferously insisting on Israel as his country of residence, Babchenko has employed a "no comment" policy regarding his permanent location. Nonetheless, he vows to return to Ukraine in the future claiming "Ukraine is my country. And I'm going to live there."

In June 2022, Facebook banned Babchenko's account, with Babchenko saying in a post that he believed his strong reaction to Russian shelling of a mall in Ukraine led to the ban.

After the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Babchenko launched a campaign against Viktor Shenderovich, accusing him of not supporting Ukraine strongly enough.

Personal life Babchenko is married. He has six adopted children and a biological daughter. 2018 Time Person of the Year as part of "The Guardians"