Russian court sentences Alexei Navalny to prison
A Moscow court has sentenced Russian oppositionist Alexei Navalny to a prison sentence of three-and-a-half years. He was found guilty of violating terms of his probation, which stems from 2014 fraud-related charges. The court counted several months that Navalny has already spent under house arrest towards his latest sentence, so that his imprisonment term was reduced to two years and eight months in a penal colony. His defense team will appeal the sentence.
Navalny returned to Russia in January, after having spent five months in Germany, to which he was flown after falling ill on a flight from Siberia to Moscow in August 2020. Navalny, along with the United States and European Union, insists that he was poisoned with Novichok on behalf of the Kremlin. These claims have been riddled with contradictions from the start. Navalny, who was warned by the Kremlin that he would be arrested upon returning to Russia, was detained by the police
Political crisis in Russia deepens as Navalny protests continue
Renewed protests in support of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny drew several tens of thousands of people on Sunday. Demonstrations took place in at least 80 Russian cities. In an indication of extreme nervousness and concern about the protests, the Kremlin again cracked down violently: over 4,000 people were arrested, and entire Moscow subway stations were shut down for the duration of the protests.
Navalny is set to appear before a court on Tuesday on charges of breaching the terms of probation for an indictment of fraud in 2014. He may be sentenced to up to three and a half years in prison.