Komi Daily, an independent regional media outlet focused on the Komi Republic in northeastern European Russia, has become the first media platform to be declared a “terrorist organization” by the Russian Federation.
The online news platform, which highlights the region’s traditions, culture, history, and language, announced the designation on Saturday via its Telegram channel, just two days after publishing an article on local wedding customs.
The Russian Supreme Court’s decision prompted the Federal Security Service (FSB) to add Komi Daily to its list of terrorist organizations. Authorities allege ties between the outlet and the Free Nations of Post-Russia Forum, a group advocating the dissolution of the Russian Federation into 41 autonomous states.
Komi Daily denies any connection to the forum, although it has been listed as one of 172 entities or “structural divisions” associated with the movement.
In November 2024, the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation designated the forum a terrorist organization. Previously, in March 2023, the forum had been declared an “undesirable organization.”
Komi Daily, whose website has reportedly been blocked in Russia, also advocates for the autonomy of the Komi, suggesting that the region’s income derived from natural resources should stay in Komi. The outlet last year also published a statement criticizing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Amnesty International has warned last year about an increasing misuse of anti-terrorism and anti-extremism legislation in Russia, particularly since the country’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“The [anti-terrorism and anti-extremism] laws, vague in their wording and arbitrary in their application, are used to silence voices of opposition and instill fear among those who dare to speak out,” according to Oleg Kozlovsky, Amnesty International’s Russia Researcher.
