St. Petersburg court fines Russian for posting drone attack aftermath online
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A court in St. Petersburg has issued the city's first fine for publishing footage showing the aftermath of a drone attack, local authorities said on Aug. 18.
A judge fined a local resident 4,000 rubles ($47) over a video posted online following a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack on St. Petersburg on July 24. Authorities did not disclose what the footage showed.
Since January 2025, Moscow has banned the publication of material showing drone strikes and other attacks without official permission. In a broader push by Russian authorities to tighten control over information about Ukrainian strikes, Russian authorities claim the measures are intended to prevent the spread of "fake news."
In May, a court in Russia’s Tula Oblast issued the first fine under the new law of 25,000 rubles ($294) to a local resident for filming and posting a video of a Ukrainian drone strike.
A large-scale Ukrainian drone attack on St. Petersburg and other parts of Russia on July 24 hit logistics facilities belonging to Wildberries, Russia’s largest online retailer.
On that day, Wildberries warehouses in St. Petersburg and Tver, as well as in Russian-occupied Crimea, were reportedly hit.
Ukrainian strikes have frequently targeted the company in recent months.
The retailer was targeted again on Aug. 18, when a Wildberries warehouse near Moscow was reportedly damaged during a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack on the Russian capital and surrounding region.
The strike followed another major attack on Moscow Oblast on Aug. 16 that damaged Wildberries' largest warehouse, a 250,000-square-meter facility.
Wildberries lists military-related equipment on its platform, including drone components and body armor. Its banking arm was sanctioned by the European Union in July over its financial contribution to the Russian state budget.
