Bayan News – A court in Russia has sentenced Alexei Navalny, the opposition leader and the most prominent critic of the current Russian government, to 19 years in prison on charges of extremism.
Navalny’s trial took place on Friday afternoon (August 4), and he appeared in court wearing a prison uniform.
Navalny’s new charge is related to his activities with his foundation in fighting corruption and the statements made by his senior colleagues. His allies have declared that the fresh accusations against Navalny are politically motivated and therefore criminalize all activities of his foundation since its establishment in 2011.
The prosecutor initially demanded a 20-year prison sentence, and Navalny himself had also stated that he did not expect anything less and would face a long-term imprisonment.
Navalny is currently serving a 9-year sentence for “embezzlement and defamation of the court” in an exile facility in eastern Moscow.
In 2021, he was also sentenced to 2 and a half years in prison for “violation of probation.”
For years, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin has been engaged in purging all potential presidential rivals. Therefore, it now seeks to ensure that its most vocal critic remains completely removed from the Russian political scene.
