MOSCOW—A Russian courtroom denied an charm by Alexei Navalny, sealing an earlier ruling that would see the notable Kremlin critic and anticorruption activist shell out a prolonged sentence in a penal colony.
Mr. Navalny, whose detention in January sparked mass protests that mushroomed into a broader act of defiance versus Russian President Vladimir Putin, was sentenced earlier this thirty day period for violating the disorders of a suspended sentence from 2014. Mr. Navalny was detained upon returning from Germany, in which he expended months recovering from a poison attack that he blames on Mr. Putin. The Kremlin denies any involvement.
The rallies, which at a person point observed in excess of 40,000 people on the streets of Moscow and countless numbers extra throughout the state, were achieved with a sweeping crackdown by the authorities, who detained extra than 10,000. Whilst Mr. Navalny’s allies have temporarily suspended big-scale protests until the spring, the protest wave has cemented his position as Mr. Putin’s most vocal critic and a potent threat to the Kremlin leader’s two-decade-aged rule.
At the hearing on Saturday, Mr. Navalny appeared inside a glass cage for defendants and flashed a “V” signal for victory. He turned down the notion that he was hiding from justice, declaring that his whereabouts were publicly recognised, and he explained the authorized procedure as absurd.
“If I was hiding, I wouldn’t be standing below in this aquarium,” Mr. Navalny instructed the courtroom.
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