Authorities in several regions of Russia have conducted searches targeting followers of the Unification Church.

This was reported by the SOVA Research Center.

According to the report, the operation was launched at the initiative of the Prosecutor General’s Office after the Ministry of Justice added three organizations affiliated with the church to its list of undesirable organizations on October 30.

Search operations were carried out in at least seven regions, including Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Ivanovo.

According to Russian media reports, on October 30, 2026, the Russian Ministry of Justice announced additions to its list of undesirable organizations.

Among the organizations designated as undesirable in Russia were three affiliated with Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church: the US-based Universal Peace Federation and Women’s Federation for World Peace, and the Republic of Korea-based Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU).

The Anti-war Pastoral Initiative, based in Estonia, was also added to the list.

We previously reported that religious communities in Russia have faced mounting pressure since February 2022. Clergy have been defrocked for praying for peace, ecclesiastical and secular courts have acted in tandem, and state authorities and church institutions have jointly punished those who refuse to justify the war.

As LF reported, Russia’s Ministry of Justice has required all religious organizations receiving foreign funding to publish reports. Failure to comply with the reporting requirements will result in penalties.

We previously reported that US Representative Joe Wilson, a Republican who chairs the US Helsinki Commission, and several other lawmakers introduced legislation titled the Countering Russia’s War on Faith Act.