Russia Charges Telegram's Pavel Durov With Aiding Terrorism
Russia’s FSB charged Telegram founder Pavel Durov with aiding terrorist activity and put him on an international wanted list. The agency said Telegram refuses to remove channels, chats, and bots used by Ukrainian intelligence and extremist or terrorist groups to plan sabotage, killings, and cyber fraud in Russia, causing deaths and major damage. Telegram responded with a post showing Durov raising his middle finger, while Durov has previously accused Russian authorities of inventing pretexts to limit access to Telegram. The Russian wanted-list entry is only a domestic measure and does not force other countries to act. Durov has not lived in Russia since 2014 and is based in Dubai. He also faces a separate 2024 French indictment over illegal content on Telegram and is under judicial supervision there. Both cases center on claims that Telegram fails to moderate content or cooperate with investigators.
