Russia investigates Telegram CEO for aiding terrorism

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) is investigating Telegram co-founder and CEO Pavel Durov on suspicion of aiding terrorist activities, state-run media outlet Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported. The probe was reportedly triggered after Telegram refused a request from the country's communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, to remove content. Russian authorities had asked Telegram to delete approximately 155,000 channels, chat logs, and bots flagged as illegal or harmful. This included 104,093 channels allegedly spreading false information, 10,598 promoting extremism, 4,168 justifying extremism, and 3,771 related to drugs. Durov has previously stated that the Russian government attacks Telegram to promote its own state-run messenger, adding that similar blocking strategies by other countries like Iran have failed. He argued that restricting civil liberties is not the right solution and that Telegram supports freedom of expression and privacy.