On 24 September 2015 Lev Shlosberg, a member of the Pskov region assembly, publisher of a local newspaper,  an NGO activist  and an outspoken proponent of democratic values and human rights, was expelled from the assembly following a vote by members. According to RFE/RL, critics accused him of unlawfully defending his NGO in court after authorities declared it a "foreign agent" under current law. Lev Shlosberg has strongly criticized Russia's annexation of the Crimea and military action in east Ukraine. On 29 August 2015 he was attacked by unknown individuals after he publicized the funerals of Russian service personnel whom he suspected may have died while fighting in Ukraine.