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IStories Media

@istories.bsky.social

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Independent newsroom focused on Russia. Investigating Russian war crimes in Ukraine, corruption, and life in the country. Support our journalism: https://istories.media/en/donations/?utm_source=blsk

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · Aug 5

Hi! We are IStories, an independent newsroom covering Russia, for the past 3,5 years – from exile.

We’ve specialized in investigations about corruption and data-driven stories about Russia. Now we investigate Russian war crimes as well.
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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

The actual figures are higher, as we were only able to examine the publicly available data.

Read the stories of teenagers, pensioners, mothers, and entire families sentenced on fabricated charges on our website 🔽

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People Kidnapped and Sentenced with “Espionage” and “Treason” in Occupied Territories of Ukraine

At least 190 kidnapped civilians sentenced, including teenagers, seniors and whole families, 28% are women

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

6️⃣ At least 654 Ukrainian civilians have been prosecuted in the occupied territories or in Russia since the beginning of the full-scale war.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

5️⃣ At least five of the kidnapped have died in captivity.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

4️⃣ Kidnapped Ukrainian civilians are almost never exchanged: only one in 24 those exchanged is a civilian (the rest are military POWs).

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

3️⃣ In the occupied territories, 28% of the sentenced on these charges are women. The average proportion in Russia would be 6%. At least 8 cases of sentenced teenagers are known.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

2️⃣ The average sentence is 13.5 years in prison. There are at least two known cases of life imprisonment.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

1️⃣ Sentences for “treason”, “espionage” and “confidential cooperation” are being imposed more and more often: from July to September 2025, they were issued once in every three days, meanwhile before the war Russian courts would issue no more than 16 such sentences per year.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

Since Russia annexed the so-called DPR, LPR, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson Oblasts, courts established by the occupying authorities have issued >190 sentences for “treason,” “espionage,” and “confidential cooperation with foreigners”.

After examining the documents, we've learned that:

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 1d

in the occupied territories of Ukraine, people are kidnapped and tried as “spies” and “traitors” — with new sentences imposed every 3 days. Teenagers, pensioners, and entire families have fallen victim to the repression.

Here is what we have learned 🔽

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 7d

Our independent investigations rely only on people like you. If you believe the truth must be told, please consider supporting our work with a monthly donation:
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Support us!

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 7d

For the full AMA thread, go here
www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comme...

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 7d

While working on the story, we found a mobilized martial-arts instructor’s public diary — an illuminating record of one person’s shift from pacifism to support for the war.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 7d

One in four mobilized soldiers died in the war during the first year

IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 7d

The AMA was about our recent investigation of the outcomes of 3 years of Russian mobilization.

Here is the story itself:
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And here is the Charon Project Polina mentioned
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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 7d

Behind every investigation is not only data and proof, but also journalists.

Polina Uzhvak, one of the team members working on the data-driven investigation about mobilization in Russia, hosted #AskMeAnything on Reddit.

Here are a few highlights from the conversation.

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 12d

Putin’s wartime economy has reached its limit (this time for real). This is what we learned from 2026 draft federal budget data 🔽

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 15d

How Spanish wine exports to Russia are linked to chemical smuggling and Russian intelligence services — a new investigation by OCCRP, IStories, and partners 🔽

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Tapas and Toxins

An investigation by IStories, OCCRP, All Eyes On Wagner, Slidstvo.Info, and Belarusian Investigative Center

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 17d

Sanctioned Russian Sovcombank co-owner Sergey Khotimsky and his now ex-wife owned real estate in the United States worth about $60 million, and it evaded sanctions — read about it in our investigation with The Post and Courier and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution 🔽

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Sovcombank Co-owner Sergey Khotimsky Invested Millions of Dollars in U.S. Real Estate, and It Evaded Sanctions

An investigation by The Post and Courier, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and IStories

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 22d

How was this investigation done? How is IStories' Data Department finding data when everything is banned by the Russian government?

Polina Uzvak is hosting #AskMeAnything on Reddit. Join and ask a question! www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comme...

From the IAmA community on Reddit: I’m an independent journalist analyzing Russia’s military losses and investigating war crimes in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine. Ask Me Anything.

Explore this post and more from the IAmA community

www.reddit.com

IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 25d

Three years of mobilization: what one region — and the whole Russia — has endured.

We analyzed the full list of those mobilized from Tomsk Oblast and found that one in four was killed, went missing, or was wounded, and at least 11% were killed 🔽

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 27d

The Russian Armed Forces have once again carried out an operation inside a gas pipeline. Why take such risks for an unclear outcome? IStories asked military experts about it 🔽

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Russian Troops Once Again Used an Underground Pipe. Is This Tactic Really Effective?

Passages through pipes have little impact on the course of combat operations, according to military experts

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 27d

“We are investing in Spain.” Here are the details of the interrogation of Dmitry Artyakov, son of state corporation Rostec’s first deputy, who in the fourth year of the “war with the West” was detained at a villa in Spain in a money laundering case 🔽

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“My Father is a Highly Respected Person”

On the fourth year of Russian “war against the West” the son of the first deputy director of Rostec state corporation was detained in his villa in Spain in a money laundering probe. IStories got the v...

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · 28d

Russia continues to increase spending on programs for foreign influencers, IStories found out. Rossotrudnichestvo, which promotes Kremlin interests abroad and is considered a front for the FSB and SVR, has spent a record sum on this in 2025 🔽

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · Sep 12

For the first time in Russia, a foreign travel ban was enforced due to the military register — at Moscow’s airport, a man was barred from going on vacation just days after receiving a draft notice.

The draft notice register was launched in August 2025.

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Russia Implements First Travel Ban Due to Military Register

A man was barred from going on vacation just days after receiving a draft notice

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IStories Media @istories.bsky.social · Sep 11

Ivan Tkachev, head of FSB’s Directorate K, has been appointed the new chief of military counterintelligence, @istories_eng found out. In wartime, this position is considered doomed.

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