Russia charges Telegram founder Pavel Durov with facilitating terrorism. The FSB claims the messenger app was used by Ukrainian secret services to prepare and coordinate acts of sabotage and terror inside Russia, and that Telegram failed to remove channels, chats and bots used for these purposes.
An international arrest warrant has been issued for Durov, who is Russian‑born but lives abroad and holds French and UAE passports. The warrant is pending diplomatic review and may not be recognized outside Russia.
Shortly after the charges were announced, Telegram’s official account on the X platform posted a photo of Durov holding up his middle finger, a gesture that has been used in the past to protest Russian scrutiny of the app.
Telegram remains popular in both Russia and Ukraine, with around 950 million users worldwide. The platform has long prided itself on user privacy and minimal moderation, although critics argue that this stance may enable extremist content.
Durov fled Russia in 2014 after refusing to shut down opposition communities on the platform. He is the former founder of the Russian social media company VKontakte, dubbed the 'Facebook of Russia'.
Russian authorities have intensively restricted internet access as part of a broader crackdown on digital freedom. The new indictment adds to the mounting pressure on Telegram and other tech firms operating in the country.
The case is still fresh and the implications for international law, data privacy and geopolitics will unfold in the coming weeks.
