RFE/RL's Russian Service

'Huge Disaster': Russian Police Detain Three Former Navalny Coordinators

Russian police have taken three former regional coordinators of Aleksei Navalny's campaign team in for questioning amid continued pressure against the imprisoned opposition leader's associates. 

'We Had It Coming With Methane': How 51 People Died In A Siberian Coal-Mine Tragedy

According to witnesses to last week's Siberian coal-mine disaster, lax safety standards meant it was an accident waiting to happen. Fifty-one people died in Russia's worst mine tragedy since 2010.

Russian Justice Ministry Declares Dozhd TV A 'Foreign Agent'

Russia's Justice Ministry on August 20 declared the Dozhd television channel (TV Rain) a "foreign agent," part of what Kremlin opponents say is a crackdown on critical media before parliamentary elections next month.

Russian Court Bailiffs Again Enter RFE/RL's Moscow Bureau

Court bailiffs visited the offices of RFE/RL’s Moscow bureau and Current Time TV on May 25 photographing computers and other editorial equipment they’ve threatened to seize over unpaid fines imposed under Russia’s controversial “foreign agents” law. (RFE/RL's Russian Service)

Navalny Supporters Prepare For More Nationwide Protests Amid Kremlin Crackdown

Activists have scheduled a second round of nationwide protests in Russia on January 31, demonstrating against government corruption and demanding the release of Aleksei Navalny -- while Russian police have stepped up a crackdown on supporters of the jailed opposition leader.​

What's Different About The Latest Protests Across Russia

Angry protests over widespread corruption and the arrest of opposition leader Aleksei Navalny swept across Russia on January 23. What brought so many more people onto the streets compared to lots of previous protests, despite Kremlin threats and a forceful crackdown?

Russians Use TikTok In Social Media Surge Of Support For Navalny

Videos supporting jailed Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny are receiving millions of views on TikTok, while other social media platforms are also seeing a strong uptick in pro-Navalny content, including posts by popular celebrities.

Russian Watchdog Takes First Step Toward Punishing RFE/RL Under 'Foreign Agents' Law

Russia's telecommunications watchdog Roskomnadzor has drawn up its first eight administrative protocols -- all against Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty -- for violating the country's controversial foreign agents law.

Starving, Weak, And Penniless: Russians Try Life On Minimum Wage

A group of industrial workers in the central Russian region of Chelyabinsk have tried to survive on the national monthly minimum wage for one month. They found themselves starving, unable to afford medicine or treatment, and underperforming at work.

Moscow Election Official With Coronavirus Reportedly Worked On Voting Day

A member of a district election commission in Moscow says the chairwoman of the district worked when Russians voted for constitutional amendments even though she had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Thousands Rally In Moscow To Mark Nemtsov Killing Anniversary

Thousands of people have marched in Moscow to mark the anniversary of the killing of Boris Nemtsov, a vocal Kremlin critic and former deputy prime minister who was gunned down five years ago near the Kremlin. Smaller events took place in St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and other Russian cities.

Russian Activist Blogger Gets Suspended Sentence After Anti-Putin Videos

A popular Russian blogger has received a suspended three-year sentence for "inciting extremism on the Internet" in his calls for protests against President Vladimir Putin and his government. Yegor Zhukov was hailed as a hero by his supporters on the steps of a Moscow courthouse.

Sobol At Moscow Protest: 'Repression Will Not Work'

Thousands of Russians marched in central Moscow as opposition activists defied authorities' warnings and pushed ahead with a protest focused on upcoming city council elections. The August 31 action was the latest in a series of confrontations between liberal activists and Moscow city authorities -- and the Kremlin. A leading opposition figure, Lyubov Sobol, speaking to journalists during the protest, said that repression will not work and also called on Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin to resign.

Over 100 People Detained In Moscow Following Opposition Protest

No One Safe As Moscow Police Lash Out

As Moscow police respond to peaceful protests with increasing brutality, we filmed all sorts of people caught up in the violence -- protesters, passersby, and even a member of the pro-Kremlin United Russia party. (Note: Some people may find the violence in this video disturbing.)

'I Saw The Executioner': Preserving The Names Of Stalin's Polish Victims

The Moscow-based rights group, Memorial, is to publish a book naming more than 6,000 executed Polish prisoners buried in 1940 in the village of Mednoye, near the Russian city of Tver. The killings were part of a mass execution of nearly 22,000 Polish officers ordered by Soviet leader Josef Stalin.