The Political Prisoners Support project of Memorial published its latest weekly review on November 2, listing people it had recognized as political prisoners over the preceding week. They include people prosecuted in cases involving anti-war activity and religious beliefs.
According to the rights project, Dmitry Savin received an 18-year prison sentence on charges including treason and calls for terrorism. Memorial links his prosecution to anti-war leaflets and photographs of police buildings. That account of the circumstances is the rights project's assessment.
The same review reports that Alexander Yudin received a prison sentence of five years and six months. According to Memorial, his case concerned comments on reports of drone attacks.
The organization also mentioned cases in Kalmykia and other Russian regions. Among cases involving religious persecution, it cited the October arrests of four Jehovah's Witnesses in Udmurtia. In 2017, Russia's Supreme Court designated the Jehovah's Witnesses' Administrative Center and its affiliated local religious organizations as extremist and banned their activities. Rights advocates consider prosecution of believers on those grounds unjustified.