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Israeli-Russian Researcher Sentenced to 3.5 Years in Prison for Small Donations
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs is providing consular support and maintaining contact with the family of Sofya Rosenfeld, a 50-year-old Israeli-Russian scientist sentenced to three and a half years in a Russian prison. Rosenfeld was convicted on October 7, 2026, by Moscow's Gagarinsky Court for donating to the Anti-Corruption Foundation, an organization Russian authorities deemed extremist.
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What happened
- 01The Israeli Foreign Ministry is providing consular support to Sofya Rosenfeld, an Israeli-Russian scientist sentenced to 3.5 years in a Russian prison.
- 02Rosenfeld was convicted on October 7, 2026, by a Moscow court for making two donations totaling between $12 and $23 to the Anti-Corruption Foundation in 2021.
- 03Her father stated she was unaware the foundation was banned because she was on an isolated Arctic expedition without communications.
- 04The 50-year-old biologist was taken directly into custody from the courtroom and is currently held in a Moscow pre-trial detention center.
- 05The prosecution against Rosenfeld began in late 2025, several years after the donations were processed.
- 06Rosenfeld's defense team plans to appeal the verdict, with a hearing expected in several weeks.
- 07Human rights organizations have designated Rosenfeld as a political prisoner, and her family is seeking her return to Israel.
Rosenfeld, a doctor of biological sciences and leading expert on Arctic birds, made two donations in August and September 2021 totaling between $12 and $23. Her father, Boris Rosenfeld, stated that she made the transfers while the foundation was still legal and was unaware of the subsequent ban because she was on an isolated scientific expedition in the Arctic. Although she canceled the automatic transfers upon her return, the two payments had already been processed.
Russian authorities filed charges in December 2025, and Rosenfeld was taken directly to prison from the courtroom following her sentencing. Her defense team is preparing an appeal, which is expected to be heard in several weeks. Human rights groups have designated Rosenfeld as a political prisoner, and her father is urging Israeli authorities to help secure her release and return to Israel.
Summarized by baba from the reports of 3 newsrooms. Updated
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