Maria Savchenko landed in Russian Rostov-on-Don Wednesday to see her daughter who currently remains in custody there, Ukraine’s MP Ivan Krulko tweeted.
Nadia’s lawyer Mark Feygin reported on March 9 that during the today’s hearing, the Russian court is expected to tell the date of the announcement of verdict in the pilot’s case. “There will be no verdict today. After Nadia’s speech in front of the court, they will announce the date for the verdict to be announced. So it won’t take long, maybe 10-20 minutes or so. More details to be available in the afternoon”, he wrote.
He added that if Ukrainian doctors come to Rostov, the Ukrainian consulate in Russia will make every effort to see that they are allowed to examine Savchenko. As 112 International reported, the pilot whose weak health is now endangered due to the ongoing waterless hunger strike, refused to be examined or treated by Russian doctors. “I guess there’s a good chance they will be allowed to examine her. There should be no barriers for that”, Feygin wrote, adding that the protest actions aganist Savchenko's detention in Russia continue to take place across the globe - including Moscow.
On March 8, Russia agreed to let Ukrainian doctors visit Savchenko in custody in Rostov.
As 112 International reported earlier, Savchenko started fasting on March 4, demanding to let her go to Ukraine “dead or alive”. She claimed she would resist feeding or making any tests, adding that she would only allow Ukrainian doctors to examine her. She also said that any resort to physical force will be considered as torture, which she would resist.
As 112 International reported, the Donetsk city court in Rostov region, Russia, announced a break in the hearing of Savchenko’s case until March 9. Thus, the court deprived her of the right to deliver her final speech. The text of her speech was later uploaded at Facebook. Savchenko, in particular, stated that she’s going for another hunger strike if Russia doesn’t let her go. Under her current health conditions, a waterless hunger strike poses direct life risk.
In mid-December 2015, Russian court ruled that the pilot stays in detention until April 2016.