A Kyiv court has extended the pre-trial detention of Inna Kardash, who is suspected of espionage, until April 20, according to Radio Svaboda.
The journalist, who moved from Belarus to Ukraine and worked for Ukrainian media for many years, was detained at the end of January on suspicion of spying for the Belarusian KGB.
According to the report, Kardash is being held in a Kyiv pre-trial detention centre. She has complained about a lack of medical care and poor detention conditions. During the hearing, the judge ordered the facility’s administration to ensure her right to adequate medical assistance and proper conditions.
In February, during the рассмотрение her appeal against detention, the prosecutor stated that Ukrainian authorities were taking steps toward a possible exchange involving Kardash.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and military intelligence (HUR) announced her detention on January 27. The SBU claims she had been cooperating with the Belarusian KGB since 2015. She previously worked for Viktor Medvedchuk’s TV channel “112” and at Interfax Ukraine.
In 2020, Belarusian спецслужбы allegedly sent Kardash to Ukraine, where she was tasked with gathering information on Belarusians and Russians assisting Ukraine. She was also instructed to establish contacts with Chinese embassy staff in Ukraine to collect intelligence on their activities.
In 2025, she reportedly took a position at the HUR Coordination Centre for Prisoner of War Affairs, where she gathered internal information — photographing documents and recording conversations — and passed the data to Belarus.
