Archive · 18 Aug 2026
Russia jails anti-war politician 11 years amid dissent crackdown
A man named Lev Shlosberg in Russia said the war in Ukraine was a catastrophe for his country.
He also said the war should stop right away.
The government did not like what he said.
They said he was telling lies about the army and putting the soldiers in a bad light.
A court in the city of Pskov decided he must go to prison for more than 11 years.
This is a very long time, longer than many grown-ups have been in school.
He is an important person in a political group called Yabloko.
That group is the only one in Russia that wants the war to end.
The government also said the group cannot take part in the next election.
Mr. Shlosberg says he did not do anything wrong and that the trial was about politics.
Some people think the punishment is far too harsh for saying words.
Lev Shlosberg, deputy chairman of Russia's liberal Yabloko party, was sentenced to 11 years and one month in a penal colony.
He was convicted under Articles 280.3 and 207.3 of the Criminal Code for discrediting Russia's armed forces and spreading false information about them.
Shlosberg maintained his innocence, called the trial politically motivated, and repeated his call for an immediate ceasefire in the 4-1/2-year war.
Russia's Supreme Court excluded Yabloko from the September 2026 parliamentary election and rejected an appeal against the ban on Monday.
Mediazona and the BBC Russian service have recorded at least 239,354 Russian military dead, estimating the true toll at more than 350,000.
- Who
- Lev Shlosberg, 63-year-old deputy chairman of Russia's liberal Yabloko party.
- What
- Sentenced to 11 years and one month in a penal colony for anti-war statements criticizing Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.
- When
- Monday, August 17.
- Where
- A court in the city of Pskov, Russia.
- Why
- For publicly discrediting Russia's armed forces and spreading false information about the war, after describing it as a catastrophe for Russia and urging a ceasefire.
Critics, human-rights groups and Western allies
Russian authorities
Nature of the trial
Critics, human-rights groups and Western allies
Shlosberg and human-rights groups such as Memorial say the proceedings are politically motivated and that he is a political prisoner.
Russian authorities
Russian authorities prosecuted Shlosberg under post-invasion laws prescribing long prison terms for discrediting the military or spreading false information about the war.
Justification for the war in Ukraine
Critics, human-rights groups and Western allies
Kyiv and Western allies reject Moscow's rationale as a false premise for launching the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two.
Russian authorities
Moscow says it is fighting to address security threats from NATO and Ukraine, and to defend the rights of Russian-speakers living in Ukraine.
Electoral ban on Yabloko
Critics, human-rights groups and Western allies
Critics see the Supreme Court's exclusion of Yabloko from the parliamentary election as pressure on the only registered party calling for an end to the war.
Russian authorities
Russia's Supreme Court ruled to bar Yabloko from the election and rejected an appeal; the authorities have put Yabloko under heavy pressure ahead of the vote.
- Convicted person
- Lev Shlosberg
- Political party
- Yabloko (deputy chairman)
- Age
- 63
- Sentence
- 11 years and one month in a penal colony
- Charges
- Article 280.3 (discrediting the armed forces) and Article 207.3 (spreading false information)
- Prosecutors' request
- 12 years and one month
- Trial location
- Pskov
- Reported Russian military dead
- At least 239,354 named dead; estimated true toll over 350,000
Sources
Russia jails anti-war politician for 11 years in further clampdown on dissent
Russia’s prominent anti-war politician jailed for 11 years: Who is Lev Shlosberg? What was his crime?
Russia jails Yabloko leader Lev Shlosberg for 11 years over Ukraine war criticism