Eduard Charov criticized Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on social media, asking, “Would Jesus Christ have gone to kill in Ukraine?” The FSB alerted the Prosecutor's Office. A Sverdlovsk Region court fined him for “discrediting” the Armed Forces and “inciting hatred” towards state authorities.
Read MoreState censorship and control of religious communities increased following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Lutheran Archbishop Dietrich Brauer, who has left Russia, said that, at the start of the war, President Putin's administration made “a clear demand” of religious leaders to speak out in favor of the invasion.
Read MoreOn March 10, a court fined the Rev. Ioann Burdin of the Moscow Patriarchate's Kostroma Diocese one month's average local wages for online remarks and a Sunday sermon in church condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine and stressing the importance of the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.”
Read MoreJehovah's Witnesses and Muslims in Russia jailed on "extremism"-related charges for exercising freedom of religion or belief face years of restrictions and stigma after the sentence ends, including blocked bank accounts, restricted movement and voting rights, harsher penalties for another offense and more. This means that the religious lives, health, reputations and finances – of people who have not engaged in any violent activity or infringed upon the human rights of others – could be adversely affected for well over a decade.
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