News
- FSB Opens Case Against Russian Democratic Society Head Ksenia MaksimovaRussia's Federal Security Service has opened a criminal case against Ksenia Maksimova, head of the Russian Democratic Society, accusing her of organizing fundraising for Kyiv and ties to a group designated as terrorist.
- Trump Urges Zelensky to Ease Strikes on Russian Oil RefineriesTrump told reporters he asked Zelensky during their conversation to scale back strikes on Russian refineries, and said the Ukrainian president replied: "We will probably do so."
- Drone attack sets Edelweiss-95 oil depot ablaze in Krasnodar regionA fire broke out at the Edelweiss-95 oil depot in the village of Novotitarovskaya in Russia's Krasnodar region following a drone attack, according to Ukrainian monitoring channels.
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
- Russian strikes hit Kharkiv apartment block and Kyiv, injuring 26Overnight Russian attacks on Kharkiv and Kyiv injured 22 people in Kharkiv, including at least eight children, and four in the Ukrainian capital, according to local officials and Ukraine's emergency service.
- Pro-Kremlin whistleblower demands 'Agentstvo' be labeled 'undesirable organization'Vitaly Borodin, head of the Federal Project for Security and Anti-Corruption, has asked the Prosecutor General's Office and the Justice Ministry to designate the outlet Agentstvo an 'undesirable organization.'
- When War Is Measured at the Gas PumpUkraine's drone campaign against Russian refineries is cutting fuel output, forcing Moscow to restrict exports and putting pressure on domestic prices. But the consequences no longer stop at Russia's borders: lost Russian diesel is also feeding an increasingly tight global fuel market.
- Europe in the Gray Zone of WarRussia and NATO are not at war. Yet European governments increasingly describe a Russian hybrid campaign involving sabotage, cyberattacks, drones and pressure on critical infrastructure. The harder question is where peace ends when hostile acts remain deliberately below the threshold of open war.
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
- Oscar-winning Russian documentarian faces two administrative cases over failure to file 'foreign agent' reportRussian authorities have drawn up two administrative protocols against Pavel Talankin, the school videographer behind the Oscar-winning documentary Mr. Nobody Against Putin, according to court records cited by Mediazona.
- Sevastopol Pays Drone-Strike Victims a Fraction of Their Homes' ValueFamilies whose homes were destroyed in Ukrainian drone strikes on Sevastopol are receiving city payouts worth a fraction of the cost of rebuilding, with one household awarded 2.6 million rubles against an estimated 10 million ruble replacement cost.
- Pope's Envoy Matteo Zuppi Heads to Moscow to Discuss Deported Children and Prisoner ExchangeCardinal Matteo Zuppi, Pope Leo XIV's special envoy and head of the Italian Bishops' Conference, is flying to Moscow for talks with Russian officials on children taken from combat zones, prisoner exchanges and civilian issues arising from the war.
- Head of Yabloko Candidate's Campaign Staff Beaten in MoscowVarvara Kosheleva, who ran the campaign staff of a Yabloko candidate, was beaten outside her Moscow home late on September 26 by men who identified themselves as war veterans, according to the outlet RusNews.
- Tula Region Cuts 54 Million Rubles From Orphan and Low-Income Support to Fund Military PaymentsThe Tula regional government has reallocated 54.2 million rubles from programs supporting orphans, foster families and low-income residents to pay military personnel and their families, according to a decree discovered by The Insider.
- Trump urges Zelensky to strike deal with Putin before winterUS President Donald Trump said he wants Volodymyr Zelensky to reach an agreement with Vladimir Putin before the onset of a harsh winter.
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
- Russia Raises Utility Tariffs in Six Regions Four Days After Duma ElectionPrime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed an order on September 24 raising 2026 utility price-growth indices in six Russian regions, four days after voting in the State Duma election ended.
- St. Petersburg Scraps COVID Restrictions That Banned Protests for Six YearsA decree signed by Governor Alexander Beglov in March 2020 that barred rallies, pickets and demonstrations in St. Petersburg will lapse on October 1, the city administration said.
- Ukraine Strikes Azov Optical-Mechanical Plant, Fire Erupts in FoundryUkraine's General Staff confirmed a strike on the Azov Optical-Mechanical Plant, saying a fire broke out in the foundry and equipment was damaged across five production buildings.
- Russian theatre director Zhenya Berkovich sent to punitive cell for trying to bring in three candiesZhenya Berkovich, serving a six-year sentence for "justifying terrorism," has been placed in a punitive isolation cell for 15 days after guards accused her of trying to bring three candies into her barracks.
- Zelensky Urges Trump to Use 'Hell Sanctions' Law Against RussiaUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on US President Donald Trump to invoke a law allowing tariffs of up to 500% on Russian goods, after overnight Russian strikes killed two people and wounded 14 across Ukraine.
- St. Petersburg to Lift Six-Year Covid Ban That Blocked ProtestsSt. Petersburg's pandemic-era Covid-19 restrictions, used for six years to bar public demonstrations, will expire on October 1, the city administration said.
- Energy Ministry Proposes External Management at Trassa Gas Station Chain Under Putin DecreeRussia's Energy Ministry has proposed placing the Trassa gas station network under external management, invoking a presidential decree that allows temporary state control of critical infrastructure whose owners fail to protect it from security threats.
- Russian Billionaires Study Usmanov and Fridman Playbooks for Escaping EU SanctionsRussian billionaires are examining how Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman won relief from EU sanctions, hoping to replicate their tactics in court and through political channels, according to a Bloomberg survey.
- Russia Hits Ukraine With 173 Drones; Two Women Killed in ZaporizhzhiaRussia attacked Ukraine with 173 strike drones of various types, including jet-powered models, killing two women in Zaporizhzhia and sparking fires in Kyiv and Kharkiv, Ukraine's Air Force said.
- Four killed in explosion at Yakutia's Elga coal mineAn explosion at a backup pumping station at the Elga coal deposit in Yakutia killed four workers during welding work, according to the regional prosecutor's office.
- Seoul Accuses Kyiv of Breaching Deal to Keep North Korean POW Transfer SecretSouth Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Kyiv and Seoul had agreed not to disclose the transfer of two North Korean soldiers captured in Russia's Kursk region, accusing Ukraine of breaking that arrangement.
- Drone strikes hit Ilsky refinery in Russia's Krasnodar region, killing an unspecified numberDrones attacked the Ilsky oil refinery and other sites in Russia's Krasnodar region overnight, killing an unspecified number of people and injuring others, according to the regional governor.
- Russian drones hit school and kindergarten in Kyiv region, killing sevenRussian drone strikes on a school in the Kyiv region and a kindergarten in Kyiv killed seven people and wounded 59, Ukrainian officials said, as part of a mass attack on the capital.
- Jailed historian Yuri Dmitriyev hospitalized from prison colony with suspected strokeYuri Dmitriyev, a 70-year-old historian and Memorial co-founder serving 15 years, has been hospitalized from his prison colony with a suspected stroke, according to the rights group ZPCh.
- Trump Urged Zelensky to Meet Putin in Moscow; Zelensky RefusedTrump proposed during a meeting with Zelensky at the UN General Assembly in New York that the Ukrainian president travel to Moscow to meet Putin, and Zelensky refused, according to Bloomberg.
- Putin Says Russia Will 'Think' About Talks After Drone Attack on MoscowVladimir Putin said Russia will "think" about resuming negotiations with Ukraine after what he described as a massed drone attack on Moscow, claiming more than 1,600 drones entered the Moscow zone overnight on September 19-20.
- Russia to raise alcohol and tobacco excise taxes above planned levels as budget deficit widensRussian authorities are revising 2027 excise tax rates on alcohol and tobacco upward for the second time, with the increases exceeding previously approved limits as the federal budget deficit grows.
- Saxophonist Alexei Kozlov, founder of Arsenal ensemble, dies in MoscowAlexei Kozlov, the saxophonist who founded the Soviet jazz ensemble Arsenal, has died in Moscow, his jazz club's administration announced. He was 89.
- Activists in 11 Regions File Applications for Rallies Against Election FraudActivists have filed applications for public rallies against election fraud in at least 11 regions following the September 18-20 voting, according to 7x7.
- Ukraine Strikes Five Russian Plants as Moscow Pounds Kyiv for Third DayUkraine's General Staff says its forces hit oil refining and defense facilities across five Russian regions, while Russia's military launched 295 strike drones at Ukraine overnight.
- Moscow court jails political analyst Alexander Kynev on drug distribution chargeA Moscow court has ordered the arrest of political analyst Alexander Kynev on a charge of illegal production, distribution or shipment of narcotics in large quantities, Mediazona reported, citing the court's case file.
- Sanctioned tankers flock to Russian flag as registry grows 36%The number of vessels registered under the Russian flag rose 36% between January 2025 and June 2026, with 107 tankers switching to Russian registration, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
- St. Petersburg Lawyer Jailed Over Four-Year-Old Comment 'Honor of the Nation!'A St. Petersburg court sent lawyer Nurdі Shamayev to pretrial detention on charges of promoting terrorism online over a comment he posted in May 2022.
- Russian Book Union Pulls Drug-Propaganda Labeling List From Public ViewThe Russian Book Union has removed from public access its full list of books requiring labeling for drug-related content, and will now issue it only on request.
- Proekt names Putin's granddaughter: Elza Tikhonova, eight years oldThe investigative outlet Proekt has identified the eight-year-old granddaughter of Vladimir Putin as Elza Tikhonova, according to a report based on a leaked Federal Border Service database.
- Russia's Interior Ministry puts 7x7 journalist Marina Skorikova on wanted listRussia's Interior Ministry has placed Marina Skorikova, a journalist for the regional outlet 7x7, on its federal wanted list, according to a database entry found by Mediazona.
- United Russia Wins 349 of 450 Duma Seats, Its Largest Ever MajorityRussia's Central Election Commission has certified United Russia's 349-seat majority in the State Duma, the largest any party has held since the chamber was created.
- Russian Telecom Operators Threaten to Block Calls From Seven Major Banks Starting October 15Four of Russia's largest mobile operators have told the Digital Ministry they are prepared to block calls from seven major banks starting October 15 over unpaid caller-ID labeling, according to a letter cited by Kommersant.
- Train from Moscow to Tolyatti damaged by 'external interference' in Samara region, driver injuredA Moscow–Tolyatti passenger train was damaged by what the Kuibyshev Railway called 'external interference' in the Samara region, injuring the driver and halting traffic.
- Russian drone strikes on Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia and Odesa kill 14-year-old boyRussian drones struck Kyiv, the Kyiv region, Zaporizhzhia and the Odesa region overnight on September 25, killing a 14-year-old boy and a woman and wounding several others, Ukrainian authorities said.
- Macron calls new 300,000-strong mobilization in Russia 'likely'French President Emmanuel Macron said a new Russian mobilization of about 300,000 people is a credible scenario, citing US, European and Ukrainian intelligence.
- Drones Hit Lukoil Perm Refinery, Iskra Plant and Novoshakhtinsk Refinery Across RussiaUkrainian drones struck the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez refinery, the Iskra research and production plant in Ulyanovsk and the Novoshakhtinsk oil products refinery, killing one man in the Perm region and injuring at least twelve people across three regions, according to Russian officials.
- Zelensky says 'Anchorage agreements' dropped from peace talks as Ukraine holds firm on territoryUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the 'Anchorage agreements 3+2' are no longer on the negotiating table, crediting Ukraine's military with shifting the agenda away from Moscow's demands.
- Meduza: 2026 Duma elections are the dirtiest of Putin's eraMeduza's analysis of preliminary results from 82,124 polling stations found that the 2026 State Duma elections produced the most distorted vote distribution of Vladimir Putin's tenure, with the once-compact core of genuine results shrinking and a multi-cluster body of anomalous returns replacing the 2021 pattern.
- Russia Raises 2027 Utility Tariff Forecast to 11% From 8.7%Russia's Economic Development Ministry has raised its forecast for household utility tariff growth in 2027 to an average of 11%, up from the previously planned 8.7%, according to an updated ministry projection cited by Interfax.
- French actress Marina Vlady, last wife of Vladimir Vysotsky, dies at 87Marina Vlady, the French actress who won the 1963 Cannes best actress prize and became the last wife of Soviet singer Vladimir Vysotsky, has died at 87, her family said.
- Russian Apps May Become Uninstallable on Android, Digital Ministry WarnsRussia's Digital Development Ministry has acknowledged that Russian applications may become impossible to install on Android devices under Google's developer verification program.
- Co-author of Russia's 'foreign agents' law tapped to lead new State Duma AI committeeUnited Russia has proposed Alexander Sidyakin, a co-author of Russia's 2012 'foreign agents' law, to head a new State Duma committee on technology development that will cover artificial intelligence, marketplaces, drones and the creative industries.
- Croatian court approves extradition of Zhuravlyov to Germany over Nord Stream sabotage caseA Croatian court has ruled that a suspect in the Nord Stream pipeline explosions can be extradited to Germany, where prosecutors have been building a case over the 2022 sabotage.
- Russia's Finance Ministry Overhauls Family Mortgage: Rates to Range From 2% to 12% Based on Number of ChildrenRussia's Finance Ministry will replace the flat 6% rate on its Family Mortgage program with rates from 2% to 12%, tied to the number of children and the region, starting Oct. 1.
- Revolut Discloses Second Data Breach in September, Brokerage Clients AffectedRevolut has told customers that hackers accessed personal data of some users with brokerage accounts, the second breach the bank has disclosed this month.
- OpenAI Gives Ukraine Free Access to Daybreak Cyber Defense SystemOpenAI will hand Ukraine free access to Daybreak, a cyber defense system built on a special version of its GPT 5.6 Sol model with loosened restrictions so specialists can hunt for vulnerabilities and repel attacks.
- US Proposes Energy Truce, Grain Corridor and Three-Way Meeting to End Ukraine WarThe Trump administration is pressing for three immediate steps to de-escalate the war in Ukraine and revive diplomacy with Russia, Volodymyr Zelensky told Axios.
- Yabloko candidate in Yekaterinburg files for rally against election falsificationShana Ogney, a Yabloko candidate barred from the Sverdlovsk Region Legislative Assembly race, has filed notice for a rally against election falsification and in support of fair elections in Yekaterinburg.
- Fire at Starlink Ground Station Near Warsaw Was Arson, Polish Intelligence SaysA fire that destroyed equipment at a Starlink satellite communications station in eastern Poland was caused by arson, Polish special services say, and officials suspect Russian involvement.
- Six farm workers killed in strike on Kharkiv region agricultural siteA Russian strike on an agricultural enterprise in Ukraine's Kharkiv region killed six workers and wounded 12 others, according to the head of the regional military administration.