News
- Philosopher Nikolai Zyuzev Sentenced to Seven Years in Komi on Treason ChargesA court in the Komi Republic has sentenced philosopher Nikolai Zyuzev to seven years in a penal colony on state treason charges, the Federal Security Service said.
- Russian FPV Drone Hits Passenger Bus Near Nikopol, Killing FiveA Russian FPV drone struck a passenger bus on a highway near Nikopol, killing five people and wounding seven, Ukrainian officials said.
- 200 tonnes of diesel spill into Khatanga Gulf as Taimyr declares emergencyA diesel spill of up to 200 tonnes in the Khatanga Gulf has prompted a state of emergency in Taimyr, with a criminal case opened over environmental violations.
Persecution
- Pavel Syutkin: Six Years in Prison Over a Post About Bucha
A Moscow court sentenced culinary historian Pavel Syutkin to six years in a penal colony over posts about Bucha. The case involved raids, a closed trial and a disputed expert report. His defense has appealed.
- Alexander Skobov: From Soviet Psychiatric Hospitals to a 16-Year Prison Sentence
A Soviet-era dissident twice subjected to compulsory psychiatric treatment, Alexander Skobov is now serving a 16-year sentence in Russia. His case spans decades of opposition activism, terrorism-related charges and renewed punishment behind bars.
- Pavel Syutkin: Six Years in Prison Over a Post About Bucha
- Yabloko leader calls Navalnaya and Kats voting plan a manipulation by those abroadNikolai Rybakov, leader of the Yabloko party, told supporters in St. Petersburg that a voting strategy proposed by Yulia Navalnaya and Maxim Kats amounts to manipulation by people sitting abroad.
- Ukraine's 3rd Army Corps announces 'Vivaldi' operation near Lyman, says 75 km² clearedThe commander of Ukraine's 3rd Army Corps, Andriy Biletsky, publicly announced an operation named 'Vivaldi' near Lyman, saying it has cut Russian logistics routes and cleared 75 km².
- Zelensky says Russia flew drones into Moldova twice during his plane's presenceUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia sent drones into Moldovan airspace on two occasions while his presidential aircraft was there, in an interview with CBS News.
- Russia Earns $2.42 Billion From Oil in a Week, Most Since MayRussia shipped $2.42 billion worth of crude abroad in the week to September 13, the highest weekly revenue since late May, according to Bloomberg tanker tracking.
- Leningrad Region Caps Fuel Sales at 30 Litres Per Fill-UpThe Leningrad Region will limit gasoline sales to 30 litres per customer at filling stations, a temporary measure the regional government says was proposed by oil companies.
Editor's Column
- When an Outage in Russia Disrupts Taxi Service in Kazakhstan
Drone strikes damaged three Yandex data centers in four days. The disruption reached Kazakhstan, where users' personal data is stored locally, according to officials. The episode exposed the difference between keeping data inside national borders and keeping a digital service running independently.
- Peskov Says Russia Has No Political Prisoners. What the Cases and Numbers Show
On September 30, Dmitry Peskov said Russia “categorically denies” that it holds political prisoners. FACTUM’s political persecution database listed 6,794 people at the latest count; 2,163 were imprisoned, while 1,404 had been recognized as political prisoners by human rights organizations. This column looks at what those figures mean and at several criminal cases behind them.
- When an Outage in Russia Disrupts Taxi Service in Kazakhstan
- Ukraine's Parliament Fires Prosecutor General Kravchenko After He Flees to France and Accuses Anti-Corruption BureauUkraine's Verkhovna Rada voted to dismiss Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who left the country for France and accused the leadership of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of wrongdoing.
- Yabloko Polling Station Members Summoned to Military Enlistment Office on First Day of Voting in St. PetersburgMembers of St. Petersburg election commissions affiliated with the Yabloko party have received summonses to report to a military enlistment office on the morning of September 18, the first day of voting.
- Russian Court Raises Sentence for Irkutsk Translator to 15 Years and Two Months Over Attempt to Reach UkraineA Russian appeals court increased the sentence of an Irkutsk region translator convicted over an attempt to reach Ukraine to 15 years and two months, a SOTAvision correspondent reported from the courtroom.
- Pyaterochka, Magnit and Lenta Buy Concrete Drone Shelters for Their FacilitiesRussia's largest grocery chains are tendering for concrete shelters to protect distribution centers and stores from drone attacks, Verstka reported.
- Russia's Interior Ministry puts Wagner ex-fighter who criticized Defense Ministry on wanted listThe Russian Interior Ministry has placed Yevgeny Shpartun, a former Wagner Group fighter who publicly criticized the Defense Ministry, on its wanted list, Mediazona reports.
- NYT Details 'Quiet War' Between Digital Ministry and FSB Over Control of RussiansA conflict is unfolding between the Digital Ministry and the FSB's Second Service, which handles political investigations, over control of digital surveillance tools in Russia, according to The New York Times.
Analytics
- Yandex After the Drone Strikes: What Is Back Online, What Was Damaged and How Long Recovery Could Take
By October 16, Yandex had brought most everyday services back online, but cloud operations and advertising tools remained restricted. What is known about the three damaged data centers, the fate of its supercomputers and the competing timelines for a full recovery?
- Vladislav Surkov: From Managed Politics to the Kremlin's Donbas Liaison
Vladislav Surkov began his career in advertising and some of Russia's largest businesses before spending almost two decades helping shape the Kremlin's domestic political system. His name is associated with the emergence of the ruling party, pro-Kremlin youth movements and the doctrine of “sovereign democracy.” From 2013 onward, he became an important intermediary in Moscow's dealings with the conflict in Ukraine. FACTUM.press examined his career, political decisions, leaked office correspondence and intercepted conversations presented in the MH17 investigation, asking what these records establish—and what they do not—about his personal responsibility.
- Yandex After the Drone Strikes: What Is Back Online, What Was Damaged and How Long Recovery Could Take
- Max messenger to hand banks and shops data from identity documents under new user agreementThe Russian state-backed messenger Max has expanded its user agreement to let commercial organizations receive data from identity documents issued by state bodies, according to the September 9 edition of the terms.
- Foreign Guests at Yekaterinburg Youth Festival Get Internet Without Roskomnadzor BlocksForeign delegates at the International Youth Festival in Yekaterinburg can access the internet without Roskomnadzor's traffic filtering, while Russian participants remain subject to the usual blocks, according to the Yekaterinburg outlet Signal Ural.
- Boris Grebenshchikov Faces Administrative Case Over Alleged Ties to 'Undesirable' OrganizationMoscow's Khoroshevsky District Court has received an administrative case against musician Boris Grebenshchikov under Article 20.33 of the Administrative Code, which penalizes participation in an "undesirable" organization.
- Kremlin Calls Energy Truce a 'Very Good Idea' but Demands Sanctions ReliefThe Kremlin said an energy truce with Ukraine is a 'very good idea' but insisted that lifting sanctions on Russian energy exports is a condition for stabilizing world markets.
- Putin aide threatens Poland would cease to exist 'in two or three days' in a warNikolai Patrushev, an aide to Vladimir Putin and former head of the Federal Security Service, said Poland's statehood would end within days if it entered a war against Russia.
- Drone strikes cut diesel output at three of Russia's six largest refineriesThree of Russia's six largest refineries have reduced diesel production following drone attacks, with the Kirishi plant fully halted, according to Reuters.
- Sevastopol Seizes Six Companies Over Alleged Support for Ukrainian MilitaryThe Russia-installed authorities in Sevastopol have nationalized the property of six companies and five individuals, accusing them of aiding Ukraine's armed forces and military intelligence.
- Chechen activist Movlayev attempts suicide in Almaty detention ahead of extradition to RussiaMansur Movlayev, a Chechen activist who fled Russia and is awaiting extradition from Kazakhstan, attempted suicide in an Almaty detention center, his lawyer said.
- Russia Launches 200 Drones at Ukraine, Striking Kyiv Fuel StationsRussia fired 200 strike drones at Ukraine overnight, hitting gas stations in Kyiv and injuring six people in the capital, Ukraine's air force said.
- Drones hit Syzran refinery and Ozon warehouse as NATO jets down a drone over Lithuania for the first timeUkrainian drones struck an oil refinery in Syzran and a warehouse in Taganrog overnight, while Italian NATO jets downed a drone over Lithuania for the first time, according to Russian and Lithuanian officials.
- Valdai Club summit moved from Sochi to Moscow region over Ukrainian strike threatThe Valdai Club's annual meeting has been moved from Sochi to the Moscow region on the insistence of the presidential security service over the threat of Ukrainian strikes, according to the Financial Times.
- Russia Opens 319 Polling Stations Abroad for Duma Vote as Online Access Is BlockedRussia will open 319 polling stations in 152 countries for September's State Duma elections, while independent researchers found the online voting platforms are effectively unreachable from abroad.
- Russia to Allow Free Sale of Gas Masks for First Time in 30 YearsRussia will permit the open sale of certified civilian gas masks and children's protective chambers from March 1 next year, the Emergencies Ministry said.
- Drone and Missile Strikes Hit Three Russian Regions, Damaging Syzran Refinery and Ozon Warehouse in TaganrogA massed drone and missile attack struck three Russian regions overnight, damaging an oil refinery in Syzran and an Ozon logistics center in Taganrog, according to regional governors.
- US sanctions VTB under Iran program over sanctions evasionThe US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control has added Russia's VTB bank to its Iran sanctions list, saying the lender opened offices in Iran, settled payments with sanctioned Iranian banks and helped move billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets.
- France Ties EU Sanctions Relief for Usmanov to Release of Its Citizens Held in AzerbaijanFrance is pressing the European Union to lift sanctions on billionaire Alisher Usmanov as a condition of a deal to free several French citizens held by Azerbaijan, the Financial Times reports.
- Donbas Miners Plan Strike Notices to Coincide With Russian Duma Elections Over Unpaid WagesMiners in the occupied part of Ukraine's Donetsk region are preparing to halt work en masse over unpaid wages, timing the action to Russia's State Duma elections, the Independent Miners' Union says.
- Wildberries Buys 478,000 Square Meters of Netting to Shield Warehouses From DronesWildberries has tendered for 478,000 square meters of protective netting across eight Russian regions, a purchase a source in the industrial sector links to defense against drone strikes.
- EU Extends Russia Sanctions List by One Week After France and Slovakia Block Renewal Over UsmanovEU ambassadors agreed in Brussels to extend the bloc's Russia sanctions list by just one week, to a September 22 meeting, after France and Slovakia blocked a routine six-month renewal.
- Trump announces energy truce: Ukraine and Russia to halt strikes on energy facilitiesUS President Donald Trump said Ukraine and Russia have agreed to stop striking each other's energy infrastructure, writing on his Truth Social network that both sides had taken on the commitment.
- Moscow court blocks pirate copies of hockey romance novel over its coverA Moscow court has blocked pirated versions of a novel about two rival hockey players, ruling that the book's cover image amounted to propaganda, according to the outlet Verstka.
- Poland Finds Russian Drone on Beach Near Yaroslavets After Strike on Kyiv–Warsaw TrainPolish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said a Russian drone was recovered from the Baltic Sea off a beach in the West Pomeranian village of Rusinowo, days after Moscow's drone attack on western Ukraine.
- Russian schools double hours for basic military trainingBasic military training now takes up half of Russia's school safety course, Education Minister Sergei Kravtsov said, up from a fifth of the time previously allotted.
- Russian general Sergei Milchakov reported killed in Donetsk strike; documents still listed as validAn anonymous Telegram channel and Ukrainian outlets reported that Lieutenant General Sergei Milchakov, commander of Russia's 51st Army, was killed in a strike on a command post in Donetsk on August 26, though no official confirmation has come from either side.
- Navalny allies and Kats team issue joint voting recommendations for Russian Duma electionsAlexei Navalny's allies and the team of opposition politician Maxim Kats have jointly prepared voting recommendations for Russia's State Duma elections on September 18-20, Yulia Navalnaya said in her Telegram channel.
- Moscow Prosecutors Open Terrorism Justification Case Against Noize MCMoscow prosecutors have opened a criminal case against musician Noize MC, accusing him of publicly justifying terrorism online.
- Russia to Halt Gas Supplies to Armenia from September 15 to 25Gazprom Armenia said Russian natural gas deliveries to Armenia will be suspended from September 15 to 25 for scheduled maintenance on the North Caucasus–Transcaucasia pipeline.
- Rublev's Trinity icon removed from Trinity Lavra iconostasis after reports of broken display caseThe 15th-century Trinity icon by Andrei Rublev has been moved out of the iconostasis of the Trinity Cathedral at the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, according to RBC, which cited two sources.
- Drone debris strike in Sochi injures five, including a childFive people, among them a child, were injured in Sochi after what the Krasnodar region operational headquarters described as falling drone debris.
- Rescuers Recover Body of 17th Avalanche Victim in Kabardino-BalkariaSearch and rescue operations in the Bezengi gorge have ended after rescuers recovered the body of the 17th and final victim of a September 6 avalanche that struck a group of 33 on Mount Mizhirgi.
- Polish PM Tusk Calls Emergency Security Meeting After Russian Strikes Near BorderPolish Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting of the government security center after Russian strikes on western Ukraine near the Polish border, as a drone damaged a locomotive on the Kyiv-Warsaw rail line.
- Belgorod School Administrators Ordered Teachers to Vote for Strangers in Early Voting, Telegram Channel SaysSchool administrators in Belgorod handed teachers ballots belonging to people they did not know and told them to vote for United Russia and acting regional governor Alexander Shuvaev, according to the Telegram channel Pepel Belgorod.
- Trump Urges Zelensky to Stop Striking Russia's Diesel ProductionTrump told reporters at his Irish golf club that Zelensky should halt attacks on Russian diesel output because they create shortages, saying he had already raised the matter with him.
- Anti-War Committee Launches Dossier Site Rating Duma Candidates on Their Stance on the WarThe Anti-War Committee has published a website profiling State Duma candidates across Russia by their public position on the war, ahead of voting on September 18-20.
- Kremlin Does Not Rule Out Resumption of Russia-US-Ukraine Talks in OctoberThe Kremlin said it does not rule out resuming trilateral talks involving the United States and Ukraine in October, after a BRICS summit in India.
- Revolut handed passports and selfies to fraudsters who posed as a government agencyRevolut passed customer passports, selfies and transaction histories to fraudsters who sent a data request from an email domain belonging to a real government body, according to CoinDesk.
- Drone strikes hit oil refineries in Nizhnekamsk and Slavyansk-on-Kuban, killing twoTwo young men were killed and 12 people injured when drones struck the Tatarstan city of Nizhnekamsk and an oil refinery in Slavyansk-on-Kuban in the Krasnodar region, according to local officials.
- Masked men in military uniform abduct Russian woman after she refused to date a soldierA woman identified as Angelina told the outlet Vot Tak that masked men in military uniform abducted her in a large Russian border city and questioned her about alleged plans to join a legion fighting for Ukraine.
- FSB Faces Reorganization and Leadership Change as Bortnikov Prepares to Step DownThe Federal Security Service is preparing a reorganization that could begin as early as October and would affect both its key divisions and their leadership, including director Alexander Bortnikov, according to iStories.
- Court Bars Yabloko Candidate From Sochi Race Over Anti-War LeafletA court has removed Yabloko candidate Viktor Atamanchuk from a State Duma race in Sochi after a rival's lawsuit over an anti-war campaign leaflet, making him the 19th Yabloko single-mandate candidate struck from the ballot.
- Moscow's Medved jail forces lawyers to undress at entranceSecurity at Moscow's SIZO-4, known as Medved, has tightened searches of lawyers, requiring women to remove their bras and men to lower their trousers, according to attorney Anastasia Georgievskaya.
- Irkutsk Region Offers 1.5 Million Rubles for Recruiting Foreigners to Fight in UkraineThe Irkutsk region has introduced a payment of 1.5 million rubles for recruiting foreigners and stateless persons into military service, the highest sum offered by any Russian region for a single recruit.
- Cessna-172 crashes into private garden in Tatarstan, killing twoA light aircraft crashed into the garden of a private house in Tatarstan, killing two people, according to the regional emergencies ministry.
- France backs lifting EU sanctions on Alisher Usmanov, angering other member statesFrance has backed removing Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov from the European Union's sanctions list, a position that has caused frustration among other member states as they negotiate a rollover of the measures.
- Putin Threatens War With Europe If Troops Are Sent to UkraineVladimir Putin said the deployment of European troops to Ukraine would mean war with Russia, speaking to journalists after events at the BRICS summit in New Delhi.
- Drones strike KuibyshevAzot chemical plant in Tolyatti and military airfield in TaganrogDrone attacks sparked fires at the KuibyshevAzot chemical plant in Tolyatti and at a military airfield in Taganrog, with one person hospitalized and more than 70 drones downed over Taganrog overnight, according to officials and monitoring groups.