16.05.2025 08:27
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A court in Germany has banned Alisher Usmanov from being called the owner of the Dilbar yacht
A Hamburg court has banned the naming of Alisher Usmanov, the founder of USM Holding, as the owner of a large private yacht called Dilbar. DW reported on May 13, 2025 that the court found such information to violate Usmanov's right to privacy and banned its dissemination.
The lawsuit was filed in Luxembourg by a publication owned by the Luxembourg-based media holding company Mediahuis Luxembourg SA. The article on the Luxembourg Times website about the lawsuit has since been deleted. The court noted that the Dilbar yacht does not belong to Usmanov "either directly or indirectly, or through a company or trust."
The defendants in the case - that is, the publications - did not prove the veracity of this information and did not comment. In case of non-compliance with the decision, a fine of up to 250 thousand euros or up to 6 months of administrative imprisonment is prescribed for each case. This decision can be appealed.
Usmanov's lawyer, Joachim Nikolaus Steinhöfel, said that the European Union prosecutor's office and the sanctions authorities were relying on "information that has been rejected by the court and is prohibited from being distributed." In February 2024, the dpa agency also removed an article claiming that Usmanov's sister Gulbakhor Ismailova owned the Dilbar yacht following a court order. Tweets with similar content were also deleted by the German Federal Criminal Police.
Sanctions against Usmanov
On February 28, 2022, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine began, Alisher Usmanov was added to the EU sanctions list. Brussels described him as a "pro-Kremlin businessman close to Vladimir Putin" and said his activities "threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine." Usmanov has been challenging these sanctions in court.
The lawsuit was filed in Luxembourg by a publication owned by the Luxembourg-based media holding company Mediahuis Luxembourg SA. The article on the Luxembourg Times website about the lawsuit has since been deleted. The court noted that the Dilbar yacht does not belong to Usmanov "either directly or indirectly, or through a company or trust."
The defendants in the case - that is, the publications - did not prove the veracity of this information and did not comment. In case of non-compliance with the decision, a fine of up to 250 thousand euros or up to 6 months of administrative imprisonment is prescribed for each case. This decision can be appealed.
Usmanov's lawyer, Joachim Nikolaus Steinhöfel, said that the European Union prosecutor's office and the sanctions authorities were relying on "information that has been rejected by the court and is prohibited from being distributed." In February 2024, the dpa agency also removed an article claiming that Usmanov's sister Gulbakhor Ismailova owned the Dilbar yacht following a court order. Tweets with similar content were also deleted by the German Federal Criminal Police.
Sanctions against Usmanov
On February 28, 2022, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine began, Alisher Usmanov was added to the EU sanctions list. Brussels described him as a "pro-Kremlin businessman close to Vladimir Putin" and said his activities "threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine." Usmanov has been challenging these sanctions in court.