Russia Charges Telegram Founder Pavel Durov With Aiding Terrorism

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on July 29, 2026, that it has charged Pavel Durov, the 41-year-old founder and chief executive of the messaging app Telegram, with aiding terrorism. The FSB placed Durov, a Russian-born billionaire who lives in the Gulf, on an international wanted list. The announcement was reported by multiple outlets including The Guardian, CBS News, Politico Europe, BBC News, and ABC News. According to the FSB, Telegram has been used to facilitate sabotage and murder, and Russian officials allege the platform allows Ukraine's intelligence services to recruit spies and support terrorist activities. The BBC reported that the FSB specifically claims Telegram has failed to remove accounts and channels used for recruitment by Ukraine's secret service. Multiple outlets characterized the charges as part of a broader Kremlin effort to bring internet and digital communications under state control following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Soon after the charges were announced, Telegram's official account on the platform X posted an image of Durov making an obscene gesture, as reported by CBS News. As of the reporting, Durov remains outside Russia and has not been arrested. It is unresolved how Russia intends to enforce the international wanted list given Durov's location in the Gulf, and no timeline for further legal proceedings has been confirmed by any outlet. Details of the specific evidence underlying the terrorism-aiding charge have not been independently verified beyond the FSB's public claims.