Politkovskaya murder case opens

Several men have gone on trial in Moscow charged with plotting to kill the prominent Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya in 2006.

The case is expected to be held behind closed doors in a military court.

The suspected killer remains at large, and Ms Politkovskaya's supporters say there is little likelihood the trial will reveal who ordered her killing.

Ms Politkovskaya, a Kremlin critic, was shot dead outside her home in Moscow the capital on 7 October 2006.

'Farce'

Four men have been charged over the murder, but it was unclear how many of them were going on trial on Monday.

The four are Pavel Ryaguzov, an agent with Russia's security service, former policeman Sergey Khadzhikurbanov and two Chechen brothers, Dzhabrail and Ibragim Makhmudov.

However, they are not charged with Ms Politkovskaya's murder - only of taking part in the plot.

Investigators say Rustan Makhmudov - who is believed to have fired the fatal shot - and the person or persons who ordered Mr Politkovskaya's killing remain at large.

On Monday, the Moscow court is deciding whether or not the trial should be held behind closed doors, as some of the documents that are likely to be used during the hearings are considered to be "secret" by the Russian authorities.

Ms Politkovskaya's friends and supporters have described the trial as a "farce".

"How can you say the investigation is complete if you have neither the killer nor the person who ordered it in the dock?" Russian journalist Grigory Pasko said.

"Also... how can they hold a closed trial in this case?" Mr Pasko added.

The murder of Ms Politkovskaya, who wrote for the small-circulation Novaya Gazeta, shocked the international community but did not register widely in Russia.

Ms Politkovskaya had frequently travelled to Chechnya and the North Caucasus where her dispatches described some of the horror of a war where most of the casualties were civilians.

She was the 13th journalist to be killed in a contract-style killing in Russia during Vladimir Putin's period as president, according to the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

Mr Putin - who had served maximum two consecutive terms in office - was succeeded by Dmitry Medvedev in May.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7732760.stm

Published: 2008/11/17 09:27:42 GMT

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