Overview

• Margarita Simonyan announced his death early Sept. 26 on Telegram, saying he died overnight.
• He had been hospitalized since late December and was in a coma after a reported clinical death in January, following years of heart problems and prior heart attacks in 2008 and 2010.
• Keosayan hosted NTV’s satirical program International Pilorama since 2016 and directed the 2018 film about the Russia-built Crimean bridge.
• Following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, he was sanctioned by the EU, the U.K. and Canada, and Kyiv later added him to its sanctions list.
• The announcement follows Simonyan’s recent confirmation that she is undergoing cancer treatment after surgery this month.