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Jewish Russian piano player Pavel Kushnir has died in jail while awaiting trial over his criticism of Moscow’s military action in Ukraine, according to reports on Tuesday.
The gifted pianist was in jail in Birobidzhan, a city in far-eastern Russia near the border with China, since his arrest in May after posting anti-Kremlin remarks on his YouTube channel. He was 39.
A Russian outlet quoted his mother, Irina Levina, who said her son had died after going on a hunger strike that lasted for five days.
After graduating from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Kushnir performed as a soloist at philharmonics in Kursk and Kurgan before joining Birobidzhan’s philharmonic last year.
Kushnir's death left many in the Russian Jewish community in shock. "He could have been saved in the recent prisoner swap with the U.S.," a Jewish activist said.
Russian authorities did not comment on his death.