We are publishing a review of anti-extremist enforcement in September 2026 as it applies to public speech, organized activity, and attacks on physical objects unrelated to xenophobia.

We have learned of 37 court decisions issued in September against 39 individuals (one of whom was referred for compulsory psychiatric treatment) that included charges of involvement in extremist and terrorist groups and organizations whose activities we monitor:

• Five people were convicted of involvement in far-right organizations: three far-right individuals in Nizhny Novgorod, who had planned to attack a café, and two others, who attempted to set fire to a mosque in Serpukhov and were found to be involved in the neo-Nazi network NS/WP;

• At least five people were punished for collaborating with Ukrainian organizations designated as terrorist in Russia: the Russian Volunteer Corps (Russkiy dobrovolcheskiy korpus, RDK), Atesh, the Freedom of Russia Legion (Legion “Svoboda Rossii,” LSR), and an unnamed “Ukrainian paramilitary group.” One person was convicted of simultaneously funding the LSR, RDK, and Azov by sending paid reactions to various Telegram bloggers; we question the validity of this verdict;

• At least six people were convicted of financing Artpodgotovka;

• One Buryat separatist faced sanctions for participating in the activities of the Free Nations League;

• An Altai activist was convicted of participating in the Karakol Initiative Group, that is, the pagan religious movement Ak-Jaŋ (also spelled “Ak Tyan”);

• At least three people were sentenced for their involvement in the AUE criminal subculture, which is considered an extremist organization.

We classified 15 decisions (out of 37) against 15 people as clearly inappropriate:

• At least 12 people were convicted for money transfers to the Anti-Corruption Foundation (Fond borby s korruptsiyey, FBK) after it was designated an extremist organization.

• One person was convicted in absentia of involvement in the “international social movement LGBT”;

• Two Jehovah's Witnesses were sentenced to imprisonment for continuing the activities of their religious communities.

In total, the courts sentenced 24 people to imprisonment, five individuals received suspended sentences, eight were sentenced to fines, and one person - to community service. One defendant was referred for compulsory psychiatric treatment, as mentioned above.

At least 15 such cases against 18 individuals were opened in September, not counting cases related to the AUE. The defendants included individuals involved in far-right organizations, the RDK and LSR, Azov, or Columbine, as well as Jehovah's Witnesses and donors to the FBK and Artpodgotovka.

Since the beginning of 2026, we have learned of 390 court decisions in such cases involving 534 individuals. Of these, three were referred for compulsory treatment, two had their cases terminated due to their deaths, and one was released from punishment due to active repentance. We consider 178 decisions against 218 individuals to be completely or partially inappropriate.

We processed information on 42 verdicts against 42 individuals issued in September under the relevant Criminal Code articles on public statements. We view 12 of these verdicts as completely or partially inappropriate.

These 42 decisions can be grouped into the following partly overlapping categories based on the statements’ targets:

• Ten people were convicted for expressing ethnic xenophobia. These individuals were punished for their online comments calling for xenophobic violence against Jews, approving actions of Nazi criminals during World War II, and displaying Nazi symbols on social media.

• One person was punished for posting banned videos on Telegram that incited hatred “based on attitude toward religion.”

• Six people were sentenced under the articles of interest to us for statements or actions that the authorities deemed an attack on traditional Russian symbols and values; we classify all these charges as inappropriate. Their cases involved statements about Heroes of the Fatherland Day, the Immortal Regiment march, war veterans, and actions of Soviet soldiers, as well as calls to destroy St. George's ribbons.

• Courts issued rulings against at least 15 individuals for statements regarding the armed conflict with Ukraine. We consider at least six of them completely or partially inappropriate.

• At least 11 people were convicted under the articles of interest to us for other statements in instant messaging apps and on social media that were directed against the authorities in one way or another.
   

Only two people faced sanctions for their offline statements, and 39 for online statements.

The courts sentenced 23 people to imprisonment, eight to suspended sentences, four to fines, another four to compulsory labor, and one to community service.

For 13 people sentenced to imprisonment for public speech in September, we are not aware of any specific circumstances that would have led to such sentences.

Since the beginning of 2026, we have learned of 497 court decisions against 521 individuals in cases involving public speech. Six people were referred for compulsory psychiatric treatment, two cases were dismissed due to the defendant’s death, two resulted only in educational measures, and the remaining defendants faced other forms of punishment. We classified 113 court decisions against 121 individuals as completely or partially inappropriate.

We also have information on 40 new criminal cases against 40 individuals opened in September for public speech under the Criminal Code articles of interest to us.

We know of no verdicts issued in September under the relevant articles for attacks on property where we lack sufficient grounds to conclude that the attacks were motivated by ethnic or religious hatred. We have learned of two such cases newly opened last month against three individuals. These cases involve “desecration” of memorial structures that involved no damage to property and were classified under the article on “rehabilitation of Nazism.” In one case, someone recorded a TikTok video at the memorial; in the other, someone merely sat on the memorial with their shoes on. We view these charges as inappropriate.

Since the beginning of the year, we have learned of 24 convictions against 36 people convicted of attacks against property, excluding the attacks motivated by national or religious hatred. Two additional individuals were referred for compulsory psychiatric treatment.

In September, we recorded 29 administrative rulings issued by courts under Article 20.3.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO) for incitement to hatred or enmity as well as humiliation of human dignity. The rulings pertained to xenophobic statements posted on VKontakte or Telegram, including those targeting natives of the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Turkey, Jews, Russians, non-Russians, Christians, Muslims, as well as Armenians and members of the Russian peacekeeping forces in the Lachin corridor of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone.

We regard at least nine cases as clearly inappropriate. These involved statements directed at government officials, United Russia members, police officers, and military personnel that were vulgar but did not incite violence.

One case was dismissed due to absence of the elements of the offense - notably, for the second time. It involved the publication of a song containing a negative assessment of the bourgeoisie.

Administrative arrest was imposed in two cases, community service in two other cases, and sanctions for the remaining 25 cases were limited to fines.

In 2026, we reviewed 647 court decisions under Article 20.3.1 CAO and classified 98 of them as inappropriate. In the overwhelming majority of the reviewed cases, the courts imposed various sanctions. However, three cases were dismissed to prevent double punishment, four due to absence of the elements of the offense or on mental health grounds, and at least one because the statute of limitations had expired.

We learned of three rulings issued in September under Article 20.29 CAO (mass distribution of extremist materials). In the Zabaikalsky Krai, a court fined a local resident for posting a banned song on social media. In Zelenograd, Moscow, a court twice fined the owner of an esoteric shop for selling pendants online that bore a symbol resembling the neo-Nazi “black sun.” According to the court, this symbol is on the Federal List of Extremist Materials. The shop owner was also charged twice under Article 20.3 CAO for public display of prohibited symbols.

Since the beginning of the year, we have learned of 65 cases of sanctions imposed under Article 20.29 CAO, of which we view 22 as clearly inappropriate.

The Federal List of Extremist Materials was updated twice in September, with the addition of entries 5513 through 5515. The new entries include the anti-Semitic song “There's a Fire Burning for You” by WCD and Sasha Khvoyny, set to the tune of Igor Kornelyuk's song from the TV series Banditsky Peterburg; a xenophobic song attributed to a parody group with the obscene name Ebanko; and the program of Atomwaffen Division, a neo-Nazi group founded in the United States in 2013.

In September, two organizations were added to the List of Extremist Organizations: an “association” consisting of venture capitalist Alexander Galitsky and his fund, Almaz Capital Partners (according to the prosecutor's office, the businessman financed Ukrainian military projects), as well as Irida, an LGBT organization in Samara (we consider this ban inappropriate).

Sanctions for hate-motivated crimes against the person or property are reviewed separately.