Russia charges Telegram founder Durov with facilitating terrorism

Russia's Federal Security Service has charged Telegram founder Pavel Durov with facilitating terrorist activities and issued an international arrest warrant, according to reports from Reuters.

The FSB alleges that Telegram failed to remove material used by Ukrainian special services and terrorist organizations to coordinate sabotage, terrorism, and cyber-fraud operations within Russia.

Durov, born in Russia but now holding Emirati and French passports, previously founded VKontakte, Russia's equivalent to Facebook, before selling his stake in 2014 amid pressure from Russian authorities. French authorities are separately investigating Durov over allegations that Telegram inadequately countered criminal activity on the platform and failed to sufficiently cooperate with law enforcement requests. Durov has denied all wrongdoing.