Nord Stream Bombing Case Takes a Hollywood ‘Psyop’ Turn

The Nord Stream bombing case just took a turn that sounds written for a conspiracy thriller. Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, a Ukrainian man accused of helping plant explosives on the pipeline, was arrested while reportedly working on a Hollywood movie about the attack. Croatian police detained Zhuravlyov Wednesday in Pula under a European arrest warrant issued by Germany. German authorities want him extradited over the 2022 blast that destroyed three of the four pipelines linking Russia and Germany beneath the Baltic Sea. German prosecutors say Zhuravlyov is a trained diver who helped carry out the sabotage. They believe a Ukrainian state agency ordered the operation to block future Russian energy revenue that could help fund the war in Ukraine. Now comes the Hollywood connection. Germany’s Legal Tribune Online reported that Zhuravlyov was arrested while working as an adviser on Snake Island, a film directed by Doug Liman, the U.S. filmmaker behind Bourne Identity. The cast includes Adrien Brody and three-time Oscar winner Sean Penn. AFP could not immediately verify Zhuravlyov’s advisory role with German or Croatian authorities. That matters. A report is not proof, and a movie set is not a ...