On November 21, 2019, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights issued its judgment [3] in Z.A. and Others v. Russia, a case involving prolonged detention in an airport transit zone in Moscow. According to a press release [4] from the Court, the case involved the detention of four men, three of whom were held for between five and seven months, and the fourth who was detained for one year and nine months. The men challenged their detention under ECHR [5] Articles 5(1) (right to liberty) and 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment). The Grand Chamber unanimously held that there had been a violation of both Convention articles. Article 5(1) was violated because, among other reasons, there was no domestic legal basis for their detention in a transit zone. Article 3 was violated because of "the appalling material conditions" (para. 129) in the transit zone, where they were forced to sleep in the constantly-lit boarding area of the airport, had no possibility to clean themselves, and lived on emergency UNHCR rations.