Moscow – A Russian court on Thursday confirmed the 30-day arrest warrant for opposition leader Alexey Navalny. The court denied an appeal for Navalny’s immediate release, which ensured that President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic remained behind bars as his allies – those who have not been detained themselves – planned a new series of protests. massive across the country for this weekend.
Thursday’s hearing followed a wave of police raids in dozens of locations across Moscow that saw many of Navalny’s allies and his brother detained.
Alexander Zemlianichenko / AP
Navalny, 44, he was arrested earlier this month at Moscow airport immediately after returning from Germany, where he spent the previous five months recovering from poisoning with the deadly Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok. He cross the attack took place in Russia, by order of Putin, a denunciation that the Kremlin has denied.
The opposition politician was remanded in custody on charges of violating the terms of a previously suspended sentence, stemming from a previous conviction which Navalny has rejected on political grounds.
Speaking in court in the Moscow region on Thursday via a video link from prison, Navalny condemned the criminal proceedings against him as an attempt by the authorities to intimidate him.
“A lot of people, tens of millions of people agree with me,” he told the court. “We will never allow these people to take control and rob our country.”
Mstyslav Chernov / AP
He also expressed his support for fellow activists who have done so faced with persecution from participation in mass, street protests nationwide during his arrest last weekend. The court quickly dismissed his appeal against the arrest.
Protests in more than 100 Russian cities last Saturday were not approved by Russian authorities and police responded by taking some 3,500 people into custody.
Navalny’s own arrest after the poisoning test, which left him hospitalized in serious condition for weeks, has been condemned by senior US and European officials. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week that the United States was “deeply concerned” about Navalny’s security.
“The most important point is that his voice is the voice of many, many, many Russians, and it should be heard, not deceived,” Blinken said in his first official session on Wednesday, adding that the Biden’s new administration had not ruled out any action in response.
Navalny’s brother Oleg, as well as his prominent allies Lyubov Sobol and Anastasia Vasilyeva, and Maria Alyokhina, a member of the activist group Pussy Riot, were one of those arrested Wednesday night in connection with related criminal investigations. with last weekend’s protests.