Rumors about Putin's death: Are Russian authorities threatening consequences for joyful comments?

Mercury Rumors about Putin's death: Are Russian authorities threatening consequences for joyful comments? Article by Maximilian Kurz • 13 hours Paranoid Russia A rumor about Putin's supposed death made the rounds in Russia. Now people who enjoyed it may face serious consequences. MOSCOW - Russian authorities have been closely monitoring public reaction to fake news about Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin's death, according to Ukrainian intelligence. They could now sanction all those who commented positively on the death of the ruler. The US magazine Newsweek, among others, reports on this. Vladimir Putin: false reports about his death Andrii Yusov, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Agency, commented on the recent rumors about Putin's demise. Some sources had reported that Putin had died after a cardiac arrest and that his closest confidants were planning to replace him with a double. The rumor began in a post by Russian gossip channel General SVR on Telegram. The medium claimed to have inside information from the Kremlin. According to the broadcaster, Putin died on October 26th in his residence in Valdai. Authorities have captured screenshots: Anyone who is happy about Putin's fake death will be punished Rumors of Putin's alleged death spread quickly online. Russian news website Agentstvo has seen a spike in searches such as “dead Putin” and “Putin has died.” But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the news as false and Putin was later seen in public several times anyway. Yusov expressed concern to the newspaper Ukrainska Pravda that Russian secret services had recorded online reactions, including comments and likes, and created screenshots. “Someone could soon come by to pick up those who put laughing emojis under messages about Putin’s death,” the intelligence spokesman warned. “This is a typical Russian approach,” he added, emphasizing his suspicion that the rumors were deliberately spread by Russian propagandists to test the public’s reaction. Danilov: Putin's death will not be enough for change Since the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine, there have been repeated rumors about Putin's poor health. However, the Kremlin regularly emphasized that Putin was healthy. Oleksii Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, suggested that the reports of Putin's death should be seen in the context of the 2024 presidential election. He told Focus magazine that Putin's possible death alone would not be enough to bring about profound changes in Russia: "If someone thinks that his death will end everything, we think differently. The territory of modern Russia is full of inhumanity.”