Russian court jails anti-war politician Lev Shlosberg for 11 years

Moscow,UPDATED: Aug 17, 2026 20:28 IST

A Russian court on Monday convicted prominent opposition politician Lev Shlosberg for speaking out against the war in Ukraine and sentenced him to 11 years and one month in prison, in the latest crackdown ahead of next month's parliamentary election.

The verdict against Shlosberg, a senior member of the Yabloko party, marks another move by the Kremlin against dissent since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Yabloko is the only official political party in Russia that openly opposes the war.

Shlosberg, 63, is Yabloko's deputy chairman and served in the regional legislature of Pskov from 2016 to 2021. He was tried in Pskov, about 600 kilometres northwest of Moscow, on charges of "discrediting" the Russian military and spreading "false information" about it. He has rejected the charges as unfounded.

The case was linked to a debate in which he called for the war to end, and to a post on his Telegram channel showing a British tabloid front page with an image of a bloodied woman next to one of Russian President Vladimir Putin under the headline, "Her blood ... his hands."

It was the second trial Shlosberg has faced in the past two years. He had also been designated a "foreign agent", a label with strong negative overtones in Russia that brings extra government scrutiny, and was convicted of violating foreign agent rules. In December 2025, he was placed in pre-trial detention on the new charges and has remained in custody since then.

In his final statement to the court on Friday, Shlosberg said that for 30 years, Russia had travelled "a path from hopes for freedom to the almost complete destruction of human and civil rights and freedoms". He said the war in Ukraine had "changed the lives of every Russian citizen without exception" and predicted that once its true death toll becomes known, "the entire country will shudder".

After the verdict, Yabloko said Shlosberg had received a "brutal sentence" for "love of the Motherland and calls for a ceasefire". The party said on Telegram that he would appeal against the verdict. Amnesty also criticised the ruling. Marie Struthers, the group's Eastern Europe and Central Asia director, said, "His arbitrary prosecution and sentencing are blatant reprisals for exercising his right to freedom of expression to call for peace." She added, "The Russian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Lev Shlosberg and quash his conviction," and called on them to repeal laws criminalising peaceful anti-war speech, end the persecution of Yabloko members and supporters, and respect the rights to freedom of expression, association, peaceful assembly and political participation for all Russians.

The case against Shlosberg, one of the most prominent anti-war voices in Russian politics, has added to pressure on dissenters as the country heads towards next month's parliamentary election.

With PTI Inputs

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