Russian web tabloid Life News has posted audio recordings of frank phone conversations apparently featuring opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, a leader of the unregistered Parnas party.
Nemtsov, who is heard using obscene words to describe other people while talking to his colleagues, accused Life News of violating the Constitution and pledged to sue the publication.
The tabloid’s managers refused to reveal their sources and said they were ready to face lawsuits.
Life News said on its website that it has over six hours of recorded conversations between Nemtsov and other opposition leaders.
Ashot Gabrelyanov, the executive director of News Media Rus incorporating Life News, tweeted that the publication would post recordings demonstrating “the cynicism of opposition figures” an hour before the materials went online.
Nemtsov is one of the organizers of protests against alleged vote fraud at Russia's December 4 parliamentary polls. A mass rally to call for a rerun of the elections is expected to attract tens of thousands of people to downtown Moscow on December 24.
