MOSCOW, October 5 (RAPSI) – The Rostov Regional Court on Monday upheld the lower court’s ruling to extend the detention of Ukrainian military ex-pilot Nadezhda Savchenko who stands charged with involvement in the killing Russian journalists as well as civilians in Donbas, RIA Novosti reported.

Savchenko will stay in jail until January 2016.

During the court hearing Savchenko argued again that she is a PACE delegate and, therefore, has absolute immunity.

However, the Investigative Committee and Russian courts earlier considered that Savchenko doesn’t hold PACE immunity because she was elected as a delegated after being charged with a crime.

Savchenko was arrested in Russia last summer on charges of involvement in the murder of two Russian TV journalists during hostilities in Donbas and on illegally crossing the border into Russia.

TV correspondent Igor Kornelyuk and sound engineer Anton Voloshin were killed on June 17 in a mortar attack.

Savchenko, who denies all the charges, is facing 25 years in prison.

Her attorneys claim that Savchenko was framed and that there is no evidence of involvement in the journalists’ murder. They also claim she did not cross the border voluntarily but was kidnapped.