Russian pro-war journalist killed, suspect in custody

Russian authorities said Monday they arrested a woman accused of planting a bomb that killed a pro-war blogger in a St. Petersburg cafe. The blast on Sunday injured over 30 people. Russian officials released a video of the suspect, saying she took the explosive into the cafe inside a statuette. She told investigators someone asked her to deliver the statuette and she didn’t know what was in it, according to Russian media reports. Russian commentators have also accused Ukraine of involvement in the bombing, which Kyiv denies. 

What’s happening to the WSJ journalist? Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a rare call to Russia on Sunday, urging the government to free Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and American corporate security executive Paul Whelan. Russia arrested Gershkovich last week for allegedly trying to obtain classified documents. The Wall Street Journal maintains Gershkovich’s innocence. Whelan has been in custody since 2018 on espionage charges that his family and the U.S. government say are baseless.

Dig deeper: Listen to Cal Thomas’s commentary on The World and Everything in It podcast about the endgame of the Ukraine war.