A fine of 30,000 rubles (around €325 or £285) was imposed on 72-year-old Yasily Yovdy for showing his “approval in the form of likes” under videos related to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The court ruled that the likes qualified as public statements — even though members of the public cannot see who has liked a video — which discredited the Russian military.

One of the two videos related to the assassination of a top Russian general in December 2024 and was alleged to be the work of a “Ukrainian propagandist”, while the other has not been described in reports.

The decision, from a court in the Murmansk region close to Norway and Finland, is believed to the first of its kind, according to independent Russian investigative outlet Verstka.

Yevgeny Smirnov, a lawyer from rights group First Department, said: “The court came up with an interesting construct here — a comment in the form of a like.

“I do not consider a like itself as a public action aimed at discrediting the Russian Armed Forces.

“The individual did not express any personal opinion or disseminate information.”