A Moscow court has fined a 35-year-old woman 15,000 rubles for an Instagram post deemed to incite hatred. The post featured the caption “Israel is a symbol of death.”

Khadizhat Ibakhieva was found guilty of an administrative offense under Part 20.3.1 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, which addresses incitement of hatred or enmity, as well as humiliation of human dignity. The court ruling cited the inscription on the image as the reason for the prosecution.

The prosecutor’s office discovered the content on Ibakhieva’s Instagram page in the fall of 2024. The supervisory authority found materials containing signs of inciting hatred or enmity, as well as humiliating the dignity of a person or group of persons on the basis of race and nationality.

In addition to the image with the caption “Israel is a symbol of death,” Ibakhieva’s account also featured the status “Have we not shown him the two ways?” The supervisory authority also saw signs of inciting hatred or enmity in this status.

Ibakhieva did not appear at the court session and did not notify the court of the reasons for her absence. Her Instagram page was publicly accessible. An administrative protocol was drawn up against her and transferred to the court.

Ibakhieva is currently appealing the decision in the court of appeal.

The Instagram platform is owned by Meta, an organization whose activities are recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation.