Raided Russian Publisher for Selling Books Written by Renowned Writer on 'Extremists and Terrorists' List

Russian authorities raid Zakharov publishing for refusing to remove works by Boris Akunin from the 'extremists' list. Explore challenges to freedom of expression and literary rights

on Dec 20, 2023

Raided Russian Publisher for Selling Books Written by Renowned Writer on 'Extremists and Terrorists' List | Frontlist

Russian authorities raided the Zakharov publishing firm on Tuesday after it refused to cease selling works by Russian-Georgian writer Boris Akunin, who was added to the country's "extremists and terrorists" list this week.

"The Investigative Committee wants all the documents we have — contracts, payments, everything — related to Boris Akunin," said Irina Bogat, director of the publishing house, to The Moscow Times.

"We're the only publishing house that hasn't issued a statement or announced the removal of his books from our website."

On Monday, Akunin, whose real name is Grigory Chkhartishvili, was added to the list of "extremists and terrorists" maintained by the Russian financial watchdog Rosfinmonitoring.

According to Bogat, just one employee was present at the publishing house's office at the time of the raid. When the employee asked to photograph the search warrant, she was told she couldn't and her phone was confiscated, according to Bogat.

Akunin, 67, lives in the United Kingdom. He has publicly denounced Russia's assault on Ukraine and is a co-founder of the TrueRussia Foundation, which assists those impacted by the invasion.

The Investigative Committee of Russia announced Monday that it had initiated a criminal prosecution against Akunin for "justifying terrorism" and distributing "fake news" about the Russian military.