Politics · Yabloko bannedRussia's Anti-War Party Banned and Deputy Leader Jailed 11 YearsAired August 19, 2026 at 7:25 PM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00Russia's Supreme Court has rejected the0:02appeal by Yabloko,0:03>> [music]0:03>> the country's last openly anti-war0:05party, upholding a ban that bars its0:07candidates from [music] standing for0:08election. While the party's deputy0:10chairman has been sentenced to 11 years0:12in a penal colony [music] for0:13discrediting the Russian army. The case0:15centers on three figures. Lev0:17Schlossberg led Yabloko as deputy0:19chairman. Konstantin [music]0:20Eggert analyzes Russian politics. And0:23Yuri Pivovarov, an emigre historian0:24[music] based in Berlin, was the other0:27participant in the YouTube debate linked0:28to the prosecution. The YouTube debate0:30at the center of the charge was held0:32with Pivovarov in Berlin, and the0:34discrediting the army charge was tied to0:36what was described as mild criticism of0:38the war spoken on camera. The ban0:40followed an accusation by a pro-Kremlin0:42nationalist party that Yabloko is0:44Western-backed, [music] and together the0:45two rulings eliminate an official ballot0:47option for anti-war voters ahead of0:49parliamentary [music] elections. A0:50remark on a YouTube debate becomes a0:52discrediting the army prosecution. While0:55a separate political complaint becomes a0:57candidate ban. And both tracks were0:59closed at once when the Supreme Court1:00upheld the exclusion and the [music]1:02penal colony term was imposed. The1:04reporting was published August 17th, and1:06the written Supreme Court ruling and the1:08full sentencing [music] document have1:09not been shown in detail, leaving the1:12effective date, the precise scope of who1:14is barred from standing,1:15>> [music]1:15>> and the exact wording cited for the1:16charge still undetailed. Yabloko has1:19maintained a liberal opposition profile1:21with a modest, restrained anti-war1:23stance, not a radical one. And the1:25assessment offered was that the appeal1:27had no chance with Russian courts and1:29permitted parties [music] described as1:30theater controlled by the Kremlin1:31administration, tightening the already1:33narrow space for lawful opposition1:35inside Russia.1:37Like and follow for more stories that1:38matter.Explore with HeyDexFollow via RSSThe shortThe short ↗