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The Pskov Regional Court has upheld the verdict against Yabloko party deputy chairperson Lev Shlosberg in the case concerning military “fake news” (clause “d” part 2, article 207.3 of the Criminal Code) and repeated “discrediting” of the army (part 1, article 280.3 of the Criminal Code). The court of first instance sentenced the politician to 11 years and 1 month in a general regime penal colony. Mediazona reports this.

Before the court’s decision, Shlosberg spoke in the closing arguments for more than nine hours, with a break overnight. He described violations of the right to defence that occurred during the hearing and asked for the verdict to be overturned. In his final statement, the politician spoke about people’s personal responsibility for repressions, the choice between good and evil, and the preservation of human dignity.

“I have a dream. I want to see our country as a country of people who have come through all the trials of this twilight time and have remained human. I know this is possible. Stay human. Thank you,” said Shlosberg.

  • On 17 August, the Pskov City Court sentenced the politician to 11 years and 1 month in a penal colony. The case over military “fake news” was initiated because of a repost of an Echo of Moscow publication featuring the front page of the British newspaper Daily Mirror, which appeared on Shlosberg’s Telegram channel on 25 February 2022. The cover showed a bloodied woman and Vladimir Putin with the caption: “Her blood… His hands.” The politician argued that the repost appeared before the law on military “fake news” was introduced into the Criminal Code.
  • The charge of repeated “discrediting” of the army relates to a video of a debate between Shlosberg and historian Yuri Pivovarov about the war in Ukraine, published on Odnoklassniki in January 2026. During the discussion, Shlosberg called for a prompt ceasefire. According to him, the statements he was accused of making actually belonged to Pivovarov, whom he was arguing with.
  • When setting the sentence, the court also took into account a previous conviction against Shlosberg for violating the obligations of a “foreign agent.” In November 2025, the politician was sentenced to 420 hours of compulsory work for publishing materials without the “foreign agent” label. Shlosberg was added to the Ministry of Justice’s register in June 2023.