Without toilet paper and 40 people in a cell: an American who visited a Russian prison told how it was

Naama Issachar, a Jewish-American who spent 10 months in a Russian prison for traveling with a small amount of marijuana, broke her silence for the first time because of WNBA star Britney Greener. Writes about it USA Today.

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"I know what Griner is going through," Issachar, 28, said during an exclusive interview with NBC News' Kate Snow. “I watch her videos and realize that I know this courtroom.”

Issachar was arrested in 2019 and sentenced to 7,5 years in prison after 0,3 oz (8,5 g) of marijuana was found in her luggage during a three-hour stopover in Moscow as she traveled from India to Israel . Issachar spent 10 months in prison before she was pardoned by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2020.

Griner, a seven-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympian, was detained in Russia in February 2022 after cannabis oil e-cigarette pods were found in her luggage at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport. Griner pleaded guilty to drug possession last week and now faces up to 10 years in prison.

Issachar said the Griner case is "probably the main reason" she shares her story.

Like Griner, Issachar said she unknowingly traveled with cannabis.

"It wasn't intentional," she admitted.

On the subject: Already the third American was captured in Ukraine: they are all in the same prison in Donetsk

Issachar said her backpack was searched in front of her after she was dragged out of line at Sheremetyevo Airport as she tried to board her flight home. The 28-year-old said there was no interpreter and she was not sure what was going on. As a result, marijuana was found in her backpack.

“I didn’t understand where it came from,” she recalls. “I understood that it was probably bad, but I didn’t suspect how bad it could be - that this is probably one of the worst countries for this.”

Issachar said she was imprisoned for 10 months in several Russian facilities, including one believed to be holding Griner. According to her, she shared a cell with 40 women at the same time, and she was allowed to go out into the fresh air for only one hour a day.

“They don’t give anything but food,” she said, adding that there were never any insults. “They don’t provide you with toilet paper or feminine hygiene products.”

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Issachar, who grew up in New Jersey and then moved to Israel as a teenager and served as a sniper in the Israeli army, said she considers herself an "unquestionable" political pawn used by Putin during the escalating tensions between the Russian leader and then-Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin. Netanyahu.

Griner was arrested and detained on February 17, on the eve of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the escalation of international tensions with the United States and the rest of the world.

When Issachar was asked what she would like to advise Griner, she replied: “Try to smile. It helps even if it doesn't seem to be."

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