welcome to bbc news. we start in moscow, where a prominent critic of vladimir putin has been sentenced to 25 years in prison. the journalist and opposition activist vladimir kara murza played a key role in persuading western governments to sanction russian officials for human rights abuses and corruption. the us says it s evidence of an escalating campaign of repression in russia. the eu called it unacceptable. the uk summoned the russian ambassador. here s our russia editor, steve rosenberg. handcuffed and in a bullet proof cage, one of president putin s most prominent critics. vladimir kara murza faced multiple charges, including treason. the verdict, guilty. the punishment, the maximum possible. 25 years in prison. access to the courtroom was heavily restricted. along with otherjournalists and foreign diplomats, we crowded into another room to watch on tv screens. for more than a decade, vladimir kara murza has been a high profile opponent of the kremlin. he helped persuad
kara murza. we will have more on all of those stories here in a moment. let s round up to the sports news. thank you, good afternoon. we start with football and the premier league where liverpool can keep their hopes of playing european football next season alive, with a win at leeds this evening. it won t be easy though forjurgen klopp s side against a leeds team fighting for premier league survival just two points above the drop zone. we have nothing to lose, really, and we are in a position that we don t want to be in the table. that means we have to act a little bit like this, we have to try new things, we have to fight for things, that s how it is. the things we have tried so far this season didn t work out properly, especially not consistently, and that s what we have to do. all the things are on the table, everything is clear, our home record isn t as bad as the away record but we play away. anyway, i m looking forward to the game. it is important to be strong in thi