3

I've found today an translated article in Russian language, claiming to originally be from Washington Post. It goes about some guy receiving reports/notes from US diplomats he knows that Russian agents stalk them, break in their homes just to randomly turn lights on and leave or to shit on their carpets.

This was so crazy, out of place and funny - I couldn't stop laughing. OTOH I thought WP is some kind of respectable paper that wouldn't stoop to publish such a crude piece of propaganda. It isn't likely even effective - with such outlandish and silly claims and all.

Unfortunately there were no link to original article. So did WP really publish anything like this?

2
  • 5
    You have no references at all? You don't even mention where you find the article. How about the reliability of that source? This site is about notable claims, but we have nothing to go on other than your filtered report.
    – user22865
    Commented Jun 28, 2016 at 15:03
  • 1
    A reference, for example, from one of leading Russian new sites: lenta.ru/news/2016/06/28/hunt. But it also cites the source: washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/… that indeed publishes this.
    – Petr
    Commented Jun 28, 2016 at 15:09

1 Answer 1

14

The original Washington Post article can be found on the Washington Post website

The most immediately relevant excerpt is probably this:

But many of the recent acts of intimidation by Russian security services have crossed the line into apparent criminality. In a series of secret memos sent back to Washington, described to me by several current and former U.S. officials who have written or read them, diplomats reported that Russian intruders had broken into their homes late at night, only to rearrange the furniture or turn on all the lights and televisions, and then leave. One diplomat reported that an intruder had defecated on his living room carpet.

In Moscow, where the harassment is most pervasive, diplomats reported slashed tires and regular harassment by traffic police. Former ambassador Michael McFaul was hounded by government-paid protesters, and intelligence personnel followed his children to school. The harassment is not new; in the first term of the Obama administration, Russian intelligence personnel broke into the house of the U.S. defense attache in Moscow and killed his dog, according to multiple former officials who read the intelligence reports.

5
  • 1
    I'd like to add that McFaul probably had no evidence that the protesters were paid by the government, nor could he be certain that anybody following his children were intelligence personnel. A lot of this has no evidence. Commented Jun 29, 2016 at 12:52
  • 1
    Perhaps, but then question asked by the OP was merely whether the Russian report of what the Washington Post article said was accurate, and it appears to be. Whether the information given to the Washington Post is accurate is another question entirely (as, I suppose, is whether the Post has accurately reported what its sources said).
    – PhillS
    Commented Jun 29, 2016 at 13:15
  • It seems to be fairly common for someone to ask a question, and the answer turns out to be kinda irrelevant because they want to know whether a claim's true and often there's a limited amount we can do there. Commented Jun 29, 2016 at 13:18
  • It's probably also worth noting that this article was in the Opinions section. Commented Jun 30, 2016 at 16:31
  • @PointlessSpike in this particular case, the OP seemed to actually just want to know if it was reported by the Post.
    – Ben Barden
    Commented Feb 27, 2018 at 21:35

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .