Between 2018 and 2025, at least 49 people lost their lives as a result of political persecution in Russia, according to the human-rights organization Memorial.
The list includes individuals who died in detention centers and prisons, shortly after release, or as a result of torture, suicide, or extrajudicial killings.
We are convinced that everything possible must be done to ensure that this list does not grow, and that the memory of these tragedies is preserved,” Memorial said in a statement.
According to Memorial’s data:
- 2018. Engineer Valeriy Pshennichnyy, accused of “state treason,” was found dead in a St. Petersburg detention center. Officials called it a suicide; rights defenders said it was torture.
- 2020. Civic activist Sergey Mokhnatkin, a symbol of peaceful resistance, died in prison after repeated beatings.
- 2022. Physicist Dmitry Kolker died in Novosibirsk two days after being arrested on “treason” charges — taken directly from a hospital where he was undergoing cancer treatment.
- 2023. In Rostov-on-Don, activist Anatoly Berezikov died under unclear circumstances shortly after being detained for anti-war graffiti.
- 2024. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in a penal colony in the Yamalo-Nenets region, becoming a symbol of resistance to authoritarianism.
- 2025. Among the new names is Matvei Ostrovsky, a 23-year-old anti-war activist from Moscow who died in a temporary detention center.
In total, the list includes 49 people — from elderly scientists and journalists to young activists and musicians.
Memorial stresses that these deaths are a direct consequence of the climate of fear, torture, and impunity that has become an integral part of Russia’s political system.
The full list of those who died under political persecution (2018–2025) is available on Memorial’s website.
Photo: Sergey Mokhnatkin — killed, but not broken.