The court in Moscow has sentenced participants of the "Mayakovsky Readings," Artem Kamardin and Yegor Shtovba, to seven and five and a half years in prison, respectively, for reciting poems against Russia's attack on Ukraine.

This information was reported by "Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty".

The poets were found guilty of allegedly "calling for activities aimed against the security of the state" and "inciting hatred or enmity" towards militants of the terrorist groups "DPR" and "LPR" in their poems, which they recited near the Mayakovsky monument in central Moscow on September 25 of last year.

On that day, Artem Kamardin, Yegor Shtovba, and Mykola Daineko expressed their opposition to Russia's war against Ukraine in their poems. The following day, a search was conducted at the poets' residence during which they were beaten. Later, a video appeared online showing the men with bruises on their faces, apologizing for their statements while kneeling. On September 28, the court sent them to pretrial detention.

In May of this year, poet and rock musician Mykola Daineko was also sentenced to four years in prison in the same criminal case.

The "Memorial" Human Rights Center recognizes the poets as political prisoners.