Nine years after a harrowing assault during a reporting trip in Chechnya, Norwegian journalist Øystein Windstad has been awarded compensation by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The court has ruled that Russian authorities must pay Windstad €6,000 (approximately 70,000 Norwegian kroner) in damages for failing to properly investigate the attack.
Windstad, originally from Aukra, Norway, was traveling with Russian human rights activists in 2016 when their minibus was ambushed near the Chechen border. A group of masked men brutally beat the group, leaving Windstad with lasting physical and psychological injuries.
“The screams of the women still haunt me,” Windstad said in a recent interview. “We all thought we were going to die. And we had every reason to think so—I was four seconds away from being blown up.”
The ECHR ruling confirms that Russia violated its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights by not conducting a thorough investigation into the attack. Russian police closed the case in 2017, citing a lack of evidence—an explanation Windstad strongly disputes.
“I find it extremely strange that I can now say, ‘Putin owes me money.’ 70,000 kroner,” Windstad commented, referring to the fact that the Russian state, and not individual perpetrators, was found responsible.
While the court did not assign blame to any specific individuals, Windstad maintains that there is ample evidence linking the attack to the Kremlin. “There is significant documentation indicating that these were people sent by Putin’s regime,” he said. “It’s disappointing that the court didn’t address who actually did this. I know very well who it was.”
Legal expert Gro Nystuen, acting director at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, emphasized that the ECHR addresses violations by states, not individuals. “The question before the court was whether Russia breached its human rights obligations by failing to investigate and prosecute those responsible,” she noted. “The court clearly found that it did.”
Windstad, who continues to work as a journalist and documentarian—most recently reporting from the Kharkiv frontlines in Ukraine—says he plans to donate any compensation he receives to human rights defenders, lawyers, and journalists working under threat in Russia and other regions affected by authoritarian regimes.
“I want the money to go to real heroes,” he said. “Those who fight for freedom of expression and universal human rights.”
Still, he remains skeptical that he will ever receive the funds. “It’s a long road ahead,” he admitted. “But I will pursue legal avenues to claim what is rightfully mine.”
The case serves as a chilling reminder of the dangers journalists face in conflict zones—and the long battle for justice when states fail to protect them.
