Wall Street Journal Reporter Evan Gershkovich & Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan Have Been Freed From Russian Custody

Thursday, August 1, 2024, 12:30 P.M. ET. 1 Minute Read, By Jennifer Hodges: Englebrook Independent News,

WASHINGTON, DC.- Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan were released shortly before noon Thursday from Russian custody, according to the Wall Street Journal. Their release was part of the biggest prisoner exchange since the Cold War.

     The exchange involved 24 prisoners after months of painstaking negotiations between Washington and Russia. The prisoner swap resulted in the release of 16 individuals wrongfully detained in Russia in exchange for 8 individuals held in the U.S., Germany, Norway, Slovenia, and Poland. Turkish intelligence sources reported that it had agreed to provide logistical support in order to complete the swap.

     In exchange, Germany agreed to release Vadim Krasikov, a Russian hitman who has been jailed in Germany since 2021. Krasikov’s release was the biggest concession made to bring Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and others home.

     The names of the other Russian prisoners who were involved in the swap were not made available.

     Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist with U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, was freed after being arrested in Russia in 2020, and another journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Russian-British citizen, was also freed as part of the prisoner exchange.

     In addition, five wrongfully jailed German citizens and seven other Russian citizens, each of them political prisoners in their own country, were released and allowed to leave Russia.

     “This continues to be a developing story, and please check back for updates as they are reported.