“Godfather” of Russian internet Anton Nossik has died

Russian internet entrepreneur and journalist Anton Nossik, often described as the “godfather” of the Russian internet, died of a heart attack on Saturday night.

Mr Nossik edited some of Russia’s most successful news websites, and founded such prominent websites as Lenta.ru and Gazeta.ru.

A prolific opponent of the government’s attempts to tighten state control over the internet, in recent years Mr Nossik also became known for his critical blog posts. In April 2016 he was fined for inciting hatred, following writing a blog post relating to Russia’s support for President Bashar al-Assad of Syria titled Erase Syria From the Face of the Earth.

“It’s impossible to believe. Rest in peace, my friend,” opposition politician Ilya Yashin of the People’s Freedom Party wrote on Twitter, one of the many expressions of shock and upset that filled Russian social media over the weekend.

Source: The Moscow Times