Amid its war on Ukraine, Russia continues to block several external religious websites, social media accounts and apps from several countries, preventing believers of various faiths from accessing information and engaging in dialogue, according to a human rights watch group.
Forum 18 — a news service that partners with the Norwegian Helsinki Committee in defending freedom of religion, thought and conscience — posted an updated list of affected sites on Oct 4.
“I think it illustrates the Russian authorities’ … obsessions, if you like, in blocking what they call extremist content,” Felix Corley, Forum 18 editor and researcher, told OSV News, noting that the bans are also operative in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.
Among the outlets that can no longer be accessed in Russia is the Belarusian website Katolik.Life, a private, voluntary initiative by an unnamed individual depicting current and historical Catholic life in that nation.