(Reuters) – Investigative journalism website bihus.info from Ukraine reported on Monday that its journalists were illegally being surveilled by a division of the SBU, the country’s domestic security agency.
Bihus.info, a website that frequently publishes in-depth articles about public figures and affluent private citizens, claimed in a post on the Telegram messaging app that 30 members of the SBU unit were snooping on its writers in December at a corporate function held at a hotel.
“Who represents the greatest threat to national security in wartime?” Telegram users said on bihus.info. “Clearly journalists, in the opinion of the SBU.”
In response, the SBU said in a statement that it initiated a criminal inquiry into the use of espionage equipment and that it maintained the ideals of a free press as part of its mandate to safeguard national interests.
Reporters were informed by an insider within the agency that following the public release of the claims last month, the head of the Department of the Defence of National Statehood, one of its units, was fired.
The SBU added in a Telegram announcement that certain media personnel had been recognised as drug traffickers’ clients.
A little-known group released a video online last month that showed bihus.info attendees at the December event using recreational drugs and discussing obtaining MDMA and cannabis, which are prohibited in Ukraine. Bihus.info, although recognising the authenticity of the video, denounced the drug use as well as the employee surveillance.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ukraine, condemned attempts to intimidate journalists and declared that a probe into the surveillance would be conducted.
