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Russia awaits explanation for journalist arrests in U.S.

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The Russian Public Chamber is awaiting an explanation for the arrest of two Russia Today journalists in the United States on Saturday, a spokesman said on Wednesday.

The Russian Public Chamber is awaiting an explanation for the arrest of two Russia Today journalists in the United States on Saturday, a spokesman said on Wednesday.

U.S. nationals Kaelyn Forde and Jon Conway, who are employees of the Moscow-based Russia Today (RT) TV channel, were arrested on Saturday after covering a protest near Fort Benning army base in Columbus, Georgia "despite complying with the police demand not to come close to the gates of the base," the network said.

"On behalf of the Public Chamber Commission, I can express only regret. I think that the U.S. side should provide an explanation for its actions toward the journalists," spokesman Pavel Gusev said, adding that the Chamber was issuing a statement demanding an explanation for the arrest.

The crew, which was filming an annual protest by human rights activists against a U.S. Defense Department training program for Latin American police, was released after posting $1,300 bail.

Mikhail Margelov, head of the international affairs committee of the Russian upper house of parliament said the U.S. police had disproportionately used force during the arrest.

"The two reporters were handcuffed, dressed in prison overalls, forced to languish in a cell with criminals, and released on bail only after 32 hours," he said.

Mikhail Nenashev, a lawmaker from the ruling United Russia party, urged government agencies on Tuesday to report on how Russian journalists abroad are protected.

Gusev said the incident was proof that the situation for journalists in "free and democratic countries like the United States" was far from ideal.

"There have been few cases like this in Russia, because, in my view, foreign journalists here are given fairly comfortable working conditions," Gusev said.

The situation for domestic journalists is, however, quite different. Russia has one of the poorest journalist safety records in the world. With at least 35 journalists murdered between 2000 and 2009, the International Press Institute places Russia fifth in its ranking of countries most dangerous for journalists, after Iraq, the Philippines, Colombia and Mexico.

A number of organizations and individuals from Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia signed an open letter to Russia's leadership and police on Wednesday, protesting against recent attacks on journalists and urging them to speed up investigations and find the perpetrators.

MOSCOW, November 24 (RIA Novosti) 

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