# Russia: a Moscow court suspends Novaya Gazeta's print license

Published 2026-09-23. Last reviewed 2026-09-22. 2 sources.

Status: in effect, as of 2026-09-22.

What we don't know: The source reviewed does not explain why a 2006 ownership matter was raised only in 2022 or what documents Roskomnadzor said were missing.

A Moscow court suspended the print license of Novaya Gazeta, whose editor Dmitry Muratov shared the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, after the media regulator Roskomnadzor said the paper had not provided documents about a 2006 change of ownership.[1][2][3][4]

- Country: [Russia](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/ru) (RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180)
- Where: Russia
- Level of government: National
- Tactic: Licensing and closure of outlets
- Stage: Silence (ladder: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders/outlet_licensing#stage-silence)
- Ladder note: A national court ended a Nobel-recognized newspaper's print license outright over a sixteen-year-old paperwork dispute, not a temporary suspension or fine.
- Head of government at the time: [Vladimir Putin](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/vladimir-putin)
- Issue of the day: The suspension came about six months into Russia's invasion of Ukraine, during which several independent Russian outlets closed or moved abroad rather than operate under new wartime speech laws.
- Outcome: Sustained, September 5, 2022. The Basmanny District Court's suspension of the print license stood as of the ruling, with no reversal reported in the source reviewed.
- Era: The 2020s

## What happened

On September 5, 2022, Moscow's Basmanny District Court suspended the print license of Novaya Gazeta, one of Russia's last major independent newspapers, at the request of Roskomnadzor, the state media regulator. Roskomnadzor alleged the paper had failed to provide documents relating to a change of ownership that had taken place in 2006, sixteen years earlier. Novaya Gazeta's editor, Dmitry Muratov, who had shared the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for his work at the paper, called the suspension "a political hit job, without the slightest legal basis." The newspaper itself said on social media that the authorities had effectively ended the publication and taken thirty years of its staff's work. The suspension followed Novaya Gazeta's earlier decision, days after Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, to pause its print and online publishing rather than operate under new laws criminalizing what the government called false information about the military.[1][2][3][4]

The print license remained suspended as of the ruling; the source reviewed does not report a reversal.[1][2][3][4]

## What reason was given

Roskomnadzor alleged the newspaper "failed to provide documents relating to a change of ownership in 2006."[1]

## What changed for reporting

One of Russia's last major independent newspapers lost its print license entirely, ending decades of publication under a legal pretext its editor said had no basis.[2][3]

## Timeline

- 2022-09-05: Russia: a Moscow court suspends Novaya Gazeta's print license

## Who acted

| Name | Role in this incident | Office at the time |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Dmitry Muratov](https://thewaronnews.com/actors/dmitry-muratov) | other | Editor of Novaya Gazeta |
| [Vladimir Putin](https://thewaronnews.com/actors/vladimir-putin) | other | President of Russia |

## Outlets and journalists

| Name | Kind | Relation |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Novaya Gazeta](https://thewaronnews.com/outlets/novaya-gazeta) | outlet | affected |

## Sources

1. Russian authorities suspend Novaya Gazeta's print license. https://cpj.org/2022/09/russian-authorities-suspend-novaya-gazetas-print-license/ (Committee to Protect Journalists, 2022-09-06).
2. Novaya Gazeta, one of Russia's last independent media, banned after court revokes licence. https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/russian-court-revokes-newspaper-novaya-gazetas-license-2022-09-05/ (Reuters, 2022-09-05).

## Claims cited

[1] Roskomnadzor's stated grounds were the newspaper's alleged failure to provide documents on a 2006 ownership change. Quote: "failed to provide documents relating to a change of ownership in 2006" Source: Committee to Protect Journalists, 2022-09-06. Russian authorities suspend Novaya Gazeta's print license. https://cpj.org/2022/09/russian-authorities-suspend-novaya-gazetas-print-license/ Claim: https://thewaronnews.com/claims/509, checked 2026-09-22.

[2] Novaya Gazeta's editor, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said the suspension was a political act without legal basis. Quote: "a political hit job, without the slightest legal basis" Source: Committee to Protect Journalists, 2022-09-06. Russian authorities suspend Novaya Gazeta's print license. https://cpj.org/2022/09/russian-authorities-suspend-novaya-gazetas-print-license/ Claim: https://thewaronnews.com/claims/510, checked 2026-09-22.

[3] Novaya Gazeta said the ruling had ended the newspaper and erased thirty years of its staff's work. Quote: "Today they killed the newspaper. Stole 30 years of life from its staff." Source: Committee to Protect Journalists, 2022-09-06. Russian authorities suspend Novaya Gazeta's print license. https://cpj.org/2022/09/russian-authorities-suspend-novaya-gazetas-print-license/ Claim: https://thewaronnews.com/claims/511, checked 2026-09-22.

[4] Moscow's Basmanny District Court suspended Novaya Gazeta's print license at Roskomnadzor's request. Quote: "a Moscow court" Source: Committee to Protect Journalists, 2022-09-06. Russian authorities suspend Novaya Gazeta's print license. https://cpj.org/2022/09/russian-authorities-suspend-novaya-gazetas-print-license/ Claim: https://thewaronnews.com/claims/572, checked 2026-09-22.

Source page: https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-suspends-novaya-gazeta-license. The War On News, CC BY 4.0.