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Russia’s Federal Financial Monitoring Service, Rosfinmonitoring, designated 3,165 individuals as “terrorists” and “extremists” in 2024, according to a report by the state-run news agency RIA Novosti that cited a press release from the agency.
Of the 3,165 individuals added in 2024, 2,248 were classified as being linked to terrorism and 917 to extremism. This marks a nearly twofold increase from the previous year — in 2023, Rosfinmonitoring designated just over 1,700 people as extremists and terrorists, as noted by Current Time.
Individuals on the list are subject to strict restrictions, including bans on engaging in media activity, making posts online, participating in public gatherings, taking part in elections for public office, and conducting most financial services — with exceptions made for tax payments, receiving a salary, and receiving compensation for damages.
While officially justified as a national security measure, the list is frequently used for political and repressive purposes. Many listed individuals are politicians, journalists, writers, and public figures who opposed the war in Ukraine. Russia also designates opposition-linked organizations as extremist or undesirable.
Among those labeled as “terrorists” or “extremists” are writer Boris Akunin, chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov, TV host Tatyana Lazareva, opposition figure Lyubov Sobol, theater director Evgenia Berkovich (who is currently imprisoned on charges of “justifying terrorism”), actor Artur Smolyaninov, and journalist Zalina Marshenkulova.
In 2021, ahead of the State Duma elections, Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF) and its regional offices were declared “extremist,” forcing them to shut down in Russia. Working in or assisting the “extremist” ACF became a criminal offense, prompting many ACF employees and volunteers to flee the country to avoid prosecution.