A viral audio recording from March 6 -- a day that saw both anti-war protests break out across Russia and the arrests of 4,400 people -- documented the cruel beating and verbal abuse police meted out to artist and feminist activist Alexandra Kaluzhskikh. The 26-year-old managed to smuggle an actively recording phone into the interrogation room. Soon after leaving policy custody, she released the audio online. Meduza contacted Alexandra and asked her to tell her story.

In the aftermath of Vladimir Putin launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, many Russians have found themselves at loggerheads with their loved ones. With the Kremlin's propaganda machine in full swing, some are having a hard time convincing their relatives that the war being waged in Ukraine is more than just a "special military operation." For other families, opposing the war has been a source of common ground that allowed them to reconcile their political views. Here are some of their stories, as recounted to Meduza.

Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine began on February 24. In the thirteen days since, Russia's defense ministry has only reported casualties once, a week after the war began: 498 casualties on the Russian side. That's currently the only official data we have. One of the few places where parents of missing Russian soldiers can turn for help is the human rights organization Soldiers' Mothers of St. Petersburg. Meduza special correspondent Sasha Sivtsova spoke with the head of the organization, Oksana Paramonova.

Last night, Vladimir Putin announced the start of a "special military operation" in the Donbas. The Russian authorities often use these kinds of euphemisms to hide the obvious, calling their mansions "hotels," dubbing members of the political opposition "extremists," and labeling independent journalists "foreign agents." We, however, believe in calling things what they are: Russia has begun a full-scale war against Ukraine.

Russia has attacked Ukraine. This is a war. Inside Russia, the authorities have imposed a new level of censorship, blocking all independent media agencies -- including TV Rain and Ekho Moskvy. Throughout the country, anti-war demonstrations have been brutally suppressed, their participants arrested. Prominent figures who have spoken out against the war have been threatened. The authorities and the Kremlin-controlled media (especially the state-owned television networks) have been lying about the war, manipulating public opinion.

On March 1, 2022 -- what feels like a century ago -- we sent a message to our newsletter subscribers, warning that the Russian authorities planned to block Meduza along with the last remnants of the country's independent news media. That has now come to pass. Hours ago, we received confirmation that the Federal Service for Supervision in the Sphere of Telecom, Information Technologies, and Mass Communications (known more commonly as Roskomnadzor) is now requiring Internet service providers inside Russia to block access to Meduza's website.

Russia and Ukraine's foreign ministers held talks in Turkey on Thursday, but found little common ground. According to Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, one of Ukraine's main goals was to get Russia to agree to a 24-hour ceasefire. This didn't happen, he said, because "other individuals are in charge of this matter" on the Russian side. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in turn, stated that "nobody has any intention of agreeing to a ceasefire." What the negotiations did bring, though, was a new wave of startling claims from the Russian side. Meduza sorts out the facts below.

On March 3, at the direction of Russia's Education Ministry, schools throughout Russia held an open lesson called "Peace Defenders," where children got the chance to learn all about the "liberation mission in Ukraine." This week, it was the parents' turn: "Informational Manipulation: How to Protect Your Children," an online meeting for parents, was held across the nation on March 10. Meduza has obtained copies of the presentation itself and the lesson plan that was given to teachers. We give a rundown of the main talking points below.

Vera Lytovchenko is a violinist from Kharkiv. Because the Russian military has been bombing her city nonstop, she's spent most of her time lately in the basement of her apartment building, where she plays violin for her neighbors. Videos of her playing have been viewed thousands of times on social media and have helped other Ukrainians endure the fear and violence that have become a part of their daily lives. Vera spoke to Meduza about how life has changed since February 24.

As Russia's war against Ukraine enters its third week, President Vladimir Putin is cracking down on his favorite agency -- the FSB. Journalists Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan, who have long specialized in covering Russia's security services, report that the FSB's foreign intelligence arm, the so-called Fifth Service, has become the target of repressions. According to Soldatov and Borogan's sources, its leadership has been placed under house arrest. There is no official confirmation of these reports as yet. For Meduza, Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan explain how the FSB's Ukraine intel got this bad.