Moscow: political persecution, detentions, searches, trials. Human rights news - 2 | OVD-Info

27.01.2026

Comedian Artemy Ostanin is facing almost six years in prison over jokes about a person with a disability and Christ.

26.01.2026

In Moscow, a performance based on a play by Brodsky featuring actors who spoke out against the war has been cancelled.

23.01.2026

A woman from Moscow has been remanded in a pre-trial detention centre in connection with a case of donations to ‘Artpodgotovka.’

23.01.2026

A woman from Moscow was sentenced to 15 days in custody for holding a solo protest near the Kremlin with a sign reading: “Putin is a murderer.”

19.01.2026

A woman from Moscow has been sent to a penal colony because of her tattoos: “Glory to Ukraine” and the insignia of Azov.

15.01.2026

In Moscow, journalists and activists have been detained outside a police station where a young woman who had escaped domestic violence is being held.

12.01.2026

Mari El Republic,

Saint Petersburg

What happened in the first days of 2026: key news on political pressure

25.12.2025

In Moscow, five defenders of the Krylatsky Hills have each been fined 15,000 roubles (approximately US$170).

23.12.2025

A nurse from Moscow has been sentenced to eight years in prison over two anti-war posts.

20.12.2025

In Moscow, an activist defending the rights of Indigenous peoples has been arrested on terrorism charges.

19.12.2025

A lecturer at Bauman University has been sentenced to three years in prison for Ukrainian songs posted on VKontakte.

18.12.2025

In Moscow, following a series of “carousel arrests,” a case has been opened against a courier for alleged “military fakes.”

18.12.2025

Spider-Man was sentenced to 15 days in jail.

15.12.2025

Pussy Riot has been designated as an “extremist organisation”

“Save yourselves for better times and be ready for them to come”: An interview with political prisoner Dmitry Ivanov

“Save yourselves for better times and be ready for them to come”: An interview with political prisoner Dmitry Ivanov

08.12.2025

MMA fighter remanded in pre-trial detention over allegations of desecrating a monument to Ministry of Emergency Situations veterans

04.12.2025

In Moscow, activists defending Losiny Ostrov National Park have been detained outside the State Duma.

03.12.2025

A Moscow resident was fined under 15 charges for having saved images featuring inverted crosses and pentagrams.

25.11.2025

Muscovite Solim Kamin has been sentenced to eight years in prison over anti-war posts.

21.11.2025

Former supporter of Donbas separatists sentenced to six years in prison in anti-war case