This decision was taken at the request of the Russian General Prosecutor's Office, according to a press release from Roskomnadzor, quoted by the agencies.
This online news service "provided access to many publications and materials that contain false information (...) about the progress of the special military operation on Ukrainian territory," the statement said.
Contacted by AFP, Google confirmed "that some people were having difficulty accessing the Google News app and website in Russia and that it was not due to technical issues on our end."
"We have worked hard to keep news services like News accessible to people in Russia for as long as possible," the group said.
Since the beginning of the Russian intervention in Ukraine on February 24, the Russian government has considerably strengthened its control of information disseminated on the internet, one of the last spaces for free expression in the country.
Many Russian and foreign media, including the BBC, have been banned from access and American social networks Facebook and Instagram have been declared "extremist" by a Moscow court.
Access to Twitter has also been restricted.
Last week, Roskomnadzor accused the American giant Google and its video service YouTube of "terrorist" activities, a first step towards a possible blockage.
At the same time, the authorities introduced two new criminal offenses in early March: one for the dissemination of information "discrediting" the Russian army and the other for the dissemination of "false" information about Russian troops.
This latest offense provides for penalties of up to fifteen years in prison and is of particular concern to opponents and the independent media, who fear prosecution for any denunciation of the offensive.
© 2022 AFP