{ "title": "Incidents in Europe, outcome sustained", "canonical_url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?continent=europe&outcome=sustained", "filters": { "continent": "europe", "outcome": "sustained" }, "sort": "date", "count": 7, "page": 1, "pages": 1, "per_page": 50, "counts_caveat": "The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.", "facets": { "country": [ { "value": "BY", "label": "Belarus", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 165, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 165th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "HU", "label": "Hungary", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 74, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "PL", "label": "Poland", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 27, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 27th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "RU", "label": "Russia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "SK", "label": "Slovakia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 37, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 37th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } } ], "continent": [ { "value": "europe", "label": "Europe" } ], "tactic": [ { "value": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "label": "Funding and ownership pressure", "count": 5 }, { "value": "outlet_licensing", "label": "Licensing and closure of outlets", "count": 3 }, { "value": "shutdowns_and_blocking", "label": "Shutdowns and blocking", "count": 2 }, { "value": "disinformation_labeling", "label": "Official labels", "count": 1 }, { "value": "insult_and_defamation_laws", "label": "Insult and defamation laws", "count": 1 }, { "value": "detention_and_violence", "label": "Detention and violence", "count": 1 } ], "stage": [ { "value": "pressure", "label": "Pressure", "count": 4 }, { "value": "punish", "label": "Punish", "count": 1 }, { "value": "silence", "label": "Silence", "count": 2 } ], "level": [ { "value": "national", "label": "National", "count": 7 } ], "outcome": [ { "value": "sustained", "label": "Sustained", "count": 7 } ], "leader": [ { "value": "alexander-lukashenko", "label": "Alexander Lukashenko" }, { "value": "beata-szydlo", "label": "Beata Szydlo" }, { "value": "robert-fico", "label": "Robert Fico" }, { "value": "viktor-orban", "label": "Viktor Orban" }, { "value": "vladimir-putin", "label": "Vladimir Putin" } ], "era": [ { "value": "2020s", "label": "2020s", "count": 4 }, { "value": "2010s", "label": "2010s", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2000s", "label": "2000s", "count": 1 } ], "year": [ { "value": "2001", "label": "2001", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2010", "label": "2010", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2015", "label": "2015", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2021", "label": "2021", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2022", "label": "2022", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2024", "label": "2024", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2026", "label": "2026", "count": 1 } ], "has_case": [ { "value": "0", "label": "without a court case", "count": 7 } ] }, "results": [ { "slug": "2026-russia-new-law-targets-exiled-journalists-assets", "title": "Russia: law on asset freezes and service denials for exiled \"foreign agents\", August 2026", "occurred_on": "2026-08-04", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "RU", "country_name": "Russia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "RU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "funding_and_ownership_pressure" ], "leader_slug": "vladimir-putin", "leader_name": "Vladimir Putin", "issue_of_the_day": null, "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2026-08-04", "outcome_note": "Signed and in force on 2026-08-04, according to RSF (s062).", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "On August 4, 2026, the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, signed a law, adopted unanimously by the Russian parliament on July 24, 2026, that allows the authorities to freeze bank accounts, block property and vehicle sales and deny consular services such as passport renewal to Russians in exile who have been designated \"foreign agents\" or who cooperate with organizations Russia has labelled \"undesirable.\" A \"foreign agent\" is a Russian legal designation that places a person or organization on a government register and subjects them to added restrictions. Of those designated, \"the vast majority are journalists,\" according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The law entered into force the same day.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-russia-new-law-targets-exiled-journalists-assets" }, { "slug": "2024-slovakia-dissolves-rtvs-creates-stvr", "title": "Slovakia's parliament dissolves public broadcaster RTVS, replaces it with STVR", "occurred_on": "2024-06-20", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "SK", "country_name": "Slovakia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "SK", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "outlet_licensing", "tactics": [ "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "robert-fico", "leader_name": "Robert Fico", "issue_of_the_day": "Fico's government accused RTVS of one-sided, activist coverage against it, a complaint it made after RTVS reporting the government considered unfavorable during Fico's return to power in late 2023.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2024-07-01", "outcome_note": "STVR replaced RTVS as planned; the ousted director-general kept only his separate parliamentary mandate.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 37, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 37th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Slovakia's parliament, controlled by Prime Minister Robert Fico's coalition, dissolved public broadcaster RTVS and replaced it with a new entity, STVR, whose director is now chosen through a process giving parliament and the culture ministry more direct control, prompting protests and criticism from the European Union.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-slovakia-dissolves-rtvs-creates-stvr" }, { "slug": "2022-russia-criminalizes-fake-war-reports", "title": "Russia criminalizes 'fake' reporting on the military, up to 15 years in prison", "occurred_on": "2022-03-04", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "RU", "country_name": "Russia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "RU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "insult_and_defamation_laws", "tactics": [ "insult_and_defamation_laws", "shutdowns_and_blocking" ], "leader_slug": "vladimir-putin", "leader_name": "Vladimir Putin", "issue_of_the_day": "The law followed Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, and was aimed at reporting on the war that differed from the Russian defense ministry's official statements about casualties and military conduct.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "The law remained in force; independent outlets that avoided closure continued operating from outside Russia.", "stage": "punish", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Russia's parliament passed a law criminalizing the publication of information about the military that contradicts official statements, with penalties up to 15 years in prison, prompting Novaya Gazeta to pull its Ukraine war coverage and the BBC, CNN and other outlets to suspend operations inside Russia.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-criminalizes-fake-war-reports" }, { "slug": "2021-belarus-blocks-tutby-arrests-staff", "title": "Belarus blocks Tut.by and arrests its editors as 'extremist'", "occurred_on": "2021-05-18", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "BY", "country_name": "Belarus", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "BY", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "shutdowns_and_blocking", "tactics": [ "detention_and_violence", "shutdowns_and_blocking" ], "leader_slug": "alexander-lukashenko", "leader_name": "Alexander Lukashenko", "issue_of_the_day": "Tut.by had continued reporting on the government's response to protests following the disputed August 2020 presidential election that kept Alexander Lukashenko in power; authorities revoked the outlet's official media registration in January 2021.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "Tut.by remained blocked and its former staff continued reporting from exile as Zerkalo; the criminal proceedings against staff continued.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 165, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 165th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Belarusian authorities blocked access to Tut.by, the country's most-read independent news site, searched its offices in three cities and arrested at least eleven staff, including its editor-in-chief, citing alleged media-law violations after the site had already lost its official media status.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-belarus-blocks-tutby-arrests-staff" }, { "slug": "2015-poland-public-media-law-firings", "title": "Poland's new government gains power to replace public broadcaster leadership, and journalists are dismissed", "occurred_on": "2015-12-31", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "PL", "country_name": "Poland", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "PL", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "tactics": [ "funding_and_ownership_pressure" ], "leader_slug": "beata-szydlo", "leader_name": "Beata Szydlo", "issue_of_the_day": "Law and Justice's decisive October 2015 election win and its stated aim of overhauling public institutions it viewed as insufficiently accountable to voters.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2019-12-31", "outcome_note": "The appointment power and pattern of dismissals continued through the remainder of the PiS government's term; ownership of the public broadcasters changed only after a later change of government.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 27, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 27th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2010s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Weeks after winning power, Poland's Law and Justice (PiS) party passed a law letting the treasury minister directly appoint and dismiss the heads of public radio and television, and dozens of journalists at the public broadcaster were subsequently dismissed or resigned.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2015-poland-public-media-law-firings" }, { "slug": "2010-hungary-media-law-content-authority", "title": "Hungary's parliament gives a government-appointed media council power to fine outlets for unbalanced coverage", "occurred_on": "2010-12-21", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "HU", "country_name": "Hungary", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "HU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "tactics": [ "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "viktor-orban", "leader_name": "Viktor Orban", "issue_of_the_day": "The incoming Fidesz government's broader effort, after its April 2010 election win, to restructure Hungary's state institutions, including media regulation.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2011-01-01", "outcome_note": "The law took effect January 1, 2011, and, after European Union criticism, Hungary amended some provisions in 2011 but kept the media authority's core licensing and fining powers.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 74, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2010s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Hungary's parliament, controlled by Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Fidesz party, passed a media law creating a government-appointed National Media and Infocommunications Authority empowered to fine any outlet, print, broadcast or online, for coverage it deemed unbalanced or offensive to public morality.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2010-hungary-media-law-content-authority" }, { "slug": "2001-russia-gazprom-takeover-ntv", "title": "State-controlled Gazprom takes formal control of Russia's independent NTV television network", "occurred_on": "2001-04-14", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "RU", "country_name": "Russia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "RU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "tactics": [ "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "vladimir-putin", "leader_name": "Vladimir Putin", "issue_of_the_day": "NTV's critical coverage of Russia's second war in Chechnya and of the government of President Vladimir Putin, who had taken office in May 2000.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2001-04-14", "outcome_note": "The takeover was not reversed; most of NTV's original staff resigned in the following weeks rather than work under the new management.", "stage": "silence", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2000s", "granularity": "anchor", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Gazprom, Russia's state-controlled gas company, used debts owed by NTV's parent company to take control of the country's last major independent television network at a shareholders' meeting, replacing its owner and top editors with its own appointees.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2001-russia-gazprom-takeover-ntv" } ], "downloads": { "csv": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?continent=europe&outcome=sustained&format=csv", "json": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents.json?continent=europe&outcome=sustained", "md": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents.md?continent=europe&outcome=sustained" }, "license": { "name": "CC BY 4.0", "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" } }