Fires of Freedom

Mikhail turns 32 today, October 12. This will be his ninth birthday in captivity.

Mikhail Kulkov is an anti-fascist from Penza and a defendant in the “Network” case. He was sentenced to 10 years in a penal colony for “participation in a terrorist organization” and “attempted drug trafficking.”

We are now supporting another political prisoner — 20-year-old punk musician Maxim Lunin from the town of Verkhnyaya Salda in Sverdlovsk Oblast. There is now a fundraiser for 250 000 rubles to cover six months of work by a lawyer who will defend Lunin at the Central District Military Court in Yekaterinburg. This is a significant amount for supporters of political prisoners, so we very much hope for your help.

Anton will turn 37 on October 9. This will be his first birthday in prison.

Anton lived in Irkutsk, worked as a security guard and repaired boats, ran a Telegram channel about the history of his hometown, helped homeless animals, and went to punk concerts.

At the end of October 2025, Anton was sentenced to six years in a general-regime penal colony on charges of “justifying terrorism” over two comments on Telegram.

Fires of Freedom was established last year, when Anarchist Black Cross groups were banned in Russia. T-shirts and tote bags from the Fires of Freedom project can now be ordered online. All profits from merchandise sales go towards supporting imprisoned anarchists and anti-fascists in Russia.

T-shirts:

• Sizes: XS to 3XL

Dima has started learning English and plans to learn the basics of German and French. In July and August, the project already sent him English and French textbooks. It is not yet clear whether these suited his needs, so the project wants to send him another batch of study materials, including a German textbook that we need to purchase for him.

Donation details:

Tomorrow on September 3, Moscow antifascist Bogdan Yakimenko will turn 27. This will be his third birthday in captivity.

In February 2026, Bogdan was sentenced to 9 years in a penal colony in the Antifa United “extremist community” case. According to law enforcement, he was the “organizer” of the Antifa United social media page (an antifascist clothing brand) and the “331 Firm” chat, where attacks on “ideological enemies” were allegedly planned.

Savely Frolov will turn 25 on 5 August. This will be his fourth birthday in captivity.

Savely is an antifascist and anti-war activist from Moscow who worked as an extreme sports instructor for children and teenagers. He was sentenced to six years in a general-regime penal colony and fined 100,000 roubles on charges of “preparing to commit high treason.” He has been imprisoned since 30 October 2022.

In June, the Fires of Freedom took part in seven events across France. At each event, project representative and former political prisoner Ivan Astashin spoke about the connection between the war in Ukraine and political repression in Russia, Russian anarchists' opposition to the war, and the criminal cases brought against them.

In June, a series of presentations and discussions will take place across France focusing on imprisoned anarchists and anti-fascists in Russia, anti-war resistance, and solidarity with Ukrainian society.

He will turn 38 years old. Ruslan Sidiki is a citizen of Russia and Italy, an electrician from Ryazan, an explorer of industrial areas, bicycle traveler, anarchist, and partisan. Last year the 2nd Western District Military Court sentenced Ruslan Sidiki to a record 29 years in prison. Two acts of sabotage against Russian military infrastructure carried out by Ruslan in 2023 were classified by the court as “terrorist acts.”

Anarchist Ruslan Sidiki, who was sentenced to 29 years in prison, continues to await his appeal in the Ryazhsk pre-trial detention center (SIZO) in the Ryazan region.

But this is not just waiting — it is a constant struggle. Ruslan is being denied access to books, newspapers subscribed in his name do not reach him, and for the second time in a row the same investigator has refused to open a criminal case regarding the torture Ruslan endured during his arrest.

In less than two months, you have donated 235,000 rubles (2600 euros) for Ruslan Sidiki’s legal defense. We have already paid the lawyer’s fees for November and December, and the remaining amount will cover expenses through the end of February.

He is turning 28. Alexey Rozhkov is an anarchist from the city of Berezovsky in the Sverdlovsk region. He was involved in punk music, previously played bass in the band Tell Me the Reason, and was interested in existentialist philosophy.

He is turning 29. Alexey is a musician from Novotroitsk in Russia’s Orenburg region. In his youth, he wanted to become a soldier, and after an unsuccessful attempt to enroll in an airborne military school, he voluntarily went to serve his compulsory military service. During that time, his views evolved first toward Marxism, and later he came to identify himself as an anarchist.

Anarchist Ruslan Sidiki remains in detention — and we continue to support him. Right now we need to raise 200,000 rubles to pay for his lawyer’s work for the next three months. When someone is held in a pre-trial detention center (SIZO), this is the most expensive period to provide support. At the same time, it’s also when there are more opportunities — for the defense, regular lawyer visits, and filing appeals.

On 22–23 November, the annual Anarchist Book Fair Amsterdam will take place, featuring workshops and presentations by horizontal initiatives from around the world.

At the fair you will be able to get “Fires of freedom” merch, as well as try — on a donation basis — the prison-style DIY korjak cake and the detainees’ drink chifir.

Former political prisoner and anarchist Ilya Romanov is in need of our help. After 20 years of imprisonment in Ukraine and Russia, a stroke, and numerous surgeries, he remains severely disabled — yet he refuses to give up. Ilya continues to paint, stay in touch with friends, and keeps his sharp mind and sense of humor.

The Anarchist Black Cross of Moscow has received information that Dmitry Osyagin does not identify himself as an anarchist or an anti-fascist — he considers himself an anti-war democrat. The reason why the security services attributed to him participation in the “Combat Organization of Anarcho-Communists” (BOAK) is currently unknown. It may be due to the authorities’ desperation to announce the arrest of at least one member of this elusive underground organization.

Anarcho-syndicalist from Ufa Kirill Bobrov has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for participating in the arson of the United Russia party office and for creating an "extremist community" in 2012. The criminal case over the arson was opened 13 years ago. Kirill left the country at that time, but in 2023 he returned to Russia for personal reasons and was arrested right at the airport.

October 18, 7:30 PM, Via San Donato 158/70 (source).