Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty
The Israel-Hamas war has activated fault lines all over the world, including in Moscow, where the Kremlin’s most influential propagandist, Vladimir Solovyov, has found himself in the middle of a media firestorm spurred by the conflict.
First, Solovyov—who previously vowed that as a Jew, he would fight for Israel if it was ever involved in a war—went back on his promise. He claimed that his duty is to be with Russia as it fights in Ukraine, although Solovyov has no plans to risk his life or limb in that war either.
And now, there is a growing rift within his media empire. A wave of public figures in Russia are attacking his channel, Solovyov Live, suggesting it employs too many Jewish staffers in comments Solovyov says amount to an attempted “ethnic cleansing.”