Russia's security agencies are targeting pro-war military bloggers, branding them as extremists after their criticism of state officials. Several prominent “Z-bloggers” have been labeled as foreign agents or extremists or detained, following criticisms of senior officials. Notable cases include Roman Alyokhin, labeled a foreign agent with about 151,000 Telegram subscribers; Tatyana Montyan, with around 400,000 followers, formally labeled a terrorist as the first Z-blogger to receive that designation; and Oksana Kobeleva, a pro-Kremlin blogger with about 10,000 subscribers, detained in November. All three criticized senior state figures or rival propagandists rather than questioning the war itself, and their appeals have not changed the official stance.
“the machine will ramp up to such an extent that they’ll all be stunned,” Apti Alaudinov stated, signaling an intention to use formal legal instruments to discipline the pro-war information space, including potential lawful destruction of dissenters.
On November 13, Apti Alaudinov, a senior Russian defense official, publicly rejected any misunderstanding and announced a broader campaign against what he called “internal enemies.” He warned that bloggers who refused to apologize and “seek common ground” would be “destroyed legally,” signaling a move to apply legal mechanisms to suppress dissent within pro-war media ecosystems.
These developments come as authorities pursue a stricter control over the domestic information space in the context of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.