UN Panel Calls for Release of 26 Jehovah’s Witnesses Detained in Russia

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) has called for the immediate release of 26 Jehovah’s Witnesses, 19 men and 7 women, stating their detention is arbitrary and unlawful. The WGAD’s opinion in the case of Maletskov and 25 Others v. Russia was adopted on March 30, 2026, and released on June 22, 2026. The WGAD is a panel of five independent experts mandated to investigate detentions that violate international human rights standards.

The 26 Witnesses were detained in 11 locations across the Russian Federation due to their peaceful religious activities. These activities include praying, meeting for worship, singing Christian songs, studying the Bible, and sharing religious literature. The detentions followed the Supreme Court’s April 2017 ruling that dissolved all 395 of the Witnesses’ legal entities in Russia and labeled the religion “extremist.” Since then, Russian authorities have raided over 2,300 homes of Witnesses, resulting in more than 530 men and women spending time in prison.

In its review of Maletskov and 25 Others v. Russia, the WGAD found the detentions arbitrary under three of its five categories. There was no legal basis for the detentions (category I), they punished the exercise of fundamental freedoms of religion, expression, and peaceful assembly (category II), and they reflected a pattern of discriminatory detention of Jehovah’s Witnesses (category V). The WGAD concluded that the detentions breached several articles of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The ruling also highlighted the severe human cost of these detentions. For example, Anna Safronova from Astrakhan is serving a six-year prison sentence—the longest imposed on a female since the 2017 ruling. She has spent over 1,500 days in a penal colony and reportedly faced mistreatment aimed at forcing her to renounce her beliefs. Andrey Vlasov in Prokopyevsk, serving a seven-year prison term, suffers from spinal stenosis and ischemic heart disease. He was forced to travel over 200 kilometers to court for multiple pretrial detention and home arrest extension hearings. Both of his applications for early release on medical grounds have been denied.

The WGAD’s findings underscore a broader pattern of systemic discrimination against Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia. The organization has been systematically targeted through legal and administrative measures, leading to widespread persecution. The WGAD’s opinion serves as a formal condemnation of these actions, emphasizing the violation of international human rights standards and the need for accountability. The case highlights the ongoing struggle of religious minorities in Russia to practice their faith without fear of persecution.

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