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Sternenko sentenced in Odesa to over seven years
Summary
A look back at the Odesa court ruling against activist Serhiy Sternenko, and a Russian-mediated prisoner exchange days earlier.
What happened in an Odesa courtroom on 23 February 2021? The Prymorskyi District Court of Odesa sentenced activist Serhiy Sternenko to seven years and three months in prison, with confiscation of half of his property.
The verdict was the central event of that day in Ukraine, and it placed the activist's name at the centre of public attention.
A separate exchange in the region
A few days earlier, on 18 February 2021, Israel and Syria carried out a prisoner exchange mediated by Russia. An Israeli woman who had crossed the border into Syria's Quneitra Governorate, and who had been detained by the Syrian military, was returned. In exchange, two Syrian shepherds held by the Israel Defense Forces were released.
The two events were unrelated, but both were part of the news picture in the days around 23 February 2021.
