Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has called for the three imprisoned members of the punk band Pussy Riot to be freed, saying further prison time would be “unproductive.” Hiss comments on Wednesday could signal the band members’ imminent release as their case comes up for appeal on October 1, 2012.

The women had already spent more than five months in jail when they were convicted in August of “hooliganism driven by religious hatred” and sentenced to two years in prison. (via Huffington Post)