By Alessandro Amicarelli — The June 4 decision of the Court of Cassation of Argentina in the case of Konstantin Rudnev invites a careful examination through the lens of international law. The principles governing preliminary detention are among the most developed in global human rights jurisprudence. They exist to prevent a procedural measure from becoming a form of punishment. They require strict necessity, individualized assessment, and a constant evaluation of proportionality.

By Alessandro Amicarelli — On June 3, Argentina’s Court of Cassation will consider a request by the prosecutors to send again Konstantin Rudnev, who is currently under house arrest, to jail. This request arrives after a year marked by procedural irregularities, medical emergencies, and investigative choices that have placed the heaviest burden on the person least connected to the events that triggered the case. Having followed this matter closely, I believe the Court now has the opportunity to correct a trajectory that has caused profound harm and has produced no corresponding benefit for justice.

by Massimo Introvigne — The case of Russian spiritual teacher Konstantin Rudnev, detained in Argentina since 2025, has taken a dramatic and deeply worrying turn. CAP-LC and United for Human Rights have now submitted a new written statement to the UN Human Rights Council, warning that the situation has “significantly worsened” since their previous filing at the Council’s last session. That earlier statement, as “Bitter Winter” reported in January, already documented the role of Russian-generated disinformation in shaping the Argentinian proceedings.

by Massimo Introvigne — Germany is known for its reliability. Sometimes this is impressive—like with its precise engineering, on-time trains, and organized archives. Other times, it leads to oddities, such as the fact that for almost thirty years, the country’s domestic intelligence service monitored Scientology, long after the political fears of the 1990s had faded. The Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (Office for the Protection of the Constitution) has now discreetly ended this monitoring, much like someone quietly shutting a door they wish they had never opened.