New Russian law forces foreign media to halt ops

Besides blocking Facebook, Moscow has given itself stronger powers to crack down on independent journalism, prompting the BBC, Bloomberg and other foreign media to suspend operations.

Washington/Kyiv: Russia blocked Facebook and some other websites and passed a law that gave Moscow much stronger powers to crack down on independent journalism, prompting the BBC, Bloomberg and other foreign media to suspend reporting in the country.

A man removes personal belongings from a house after being shelled in Irpin, outside Kyiv. (AFP)

Russia is blocking Facebook for restricting state-backed channels and the websites of the BBC, Deutsche Welle and Voice of America. CNN and CBS News said they would stop broadcasting in Russia, and other outlets removed Russian-based journalists’ bylines as they assessed the situation.

Starlink ‘will not’ block Russian news: Musk

SpaceX chief Elon Musk said on Saturday the company’s Starlink satellite broadband service will not block Russian media outlets “unless at gunpoint”.

“Starlink has been told by some governments (not Ukraine) to block Russian news sources. We will not do so unless at gunpoint,” the tech titan tweeted. “Sorry to be a free speech absolutist.”

Russia-controlled media outlets have come under fire as the West and its allies seek to crack down on misinformation about Moscow’s onslaught on Ukraine.

This week the European Union banned Russian state-funded RT and Sputnik from the 27-nation bloc, while US-based social media giants including Twitter and Facebook parent Meta have taken steps to block the spread of Russian state-linked news media.

Starlink was activated in Ukraine last week after Kyiv digital minister Mykhailo Fedorov urged Musk to provide the embattled country with stations days after it was invaded by neighbouring Russia.

The service operates a constellation of more than 2,000 satellites that aim to provide internet access across the planet. Web monitoring group NetBlocks has reported a series of significant disruptions to internet service in Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

“Some Starlink terminals near conflict areas were being jammed for several hours at a time,” Musk said in a separate tweet on Saturday.

“SpaceX reprioritised to cyber defence & overcoming signal jamming. Will cause slight delays in Starship & Starlink V2.”