Russia extends detention of WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich again

What they're saying: "Evan has now been unjustly imprisoned for nearly 250 days, and every day is a day too long," the Wall Street Journal said in a statement Tuesday.

• "The accusations against him are categorically false and his continued imprisonment is a brazen and outrageous attack on a free press," the statement added.

Catch up quick: This is the third time Russia has extended Gershkovich's pretrial detention.

• It was originally slated to end May 29, but was extended until Aug. 30 Then Russian authorities extended it again until Nov. 30.
• Russia authorities in October rejected for the third time an appeal by Gershkovich's lawyers to free him from prison.

The big picture: Representatives from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow attended the closed-door proceedings on Tuesday, the U.S. Embassy Russia wrote on Telegram.

• "We are deeply concerned by the court's decision to extend his detention for another two months. Evan has been in jail for almost 8 months without legal grounds. We reiterate our call for Evan's immediate release," the embassy added.
• Gershkovich's arrest in March marked the first time a U.S. journalist was detained in an espionage case in Russia since the Cold War, per the Committee to Protect Journalists.
• The U.S. officially declared in April that Gershkovich was being "wrongfully detained" by Russia.