Rustam Osmanovich Khalikov, 49, died in Penal Colony No. 4 in Russia’s Penza region, according to human rights groups.
Khalikov had been sentenced in a case involving alleged participation in Hizb ut-Tahrir, an organization banned in Russia as terrorist.
His death was reported by the rights projects FREE120 and Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial. According to the groups, Khalikov is believed to have died on September 27. His cause of death had not been disclosed at the time of publication.
Khalikov was detained in Chelyabinsk in November 2019. In May 2021, the Central District Military Court sentenced him to 12 years in prison on charges of participating in a terrorist organization and encouraging others to commit a terrorism-related offense.
Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial considered Khalikov a political prisoner and argued that the case contained no evidence that he had prepared terrorist attacks.
In recent years, Khalikov had sought a transfer from Penza region to a prison closer to Chelyabinsk region or Bashkortostan so that his elderly parents could visit him more easily. His requests were denied.
According to The Insider’s count, at least 10 people classified as political prisoners by Russian human rights organizations have died in Russian prisons and pretrial detention centers since the beginning of 2026.
The term “political prisoner” in this context reflects the classification used by human rights groups and is not an official legal status under Russian law.