A new trial against Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has begun in Russia. The 47-year-old man was accused of “extremism”. In the courtroom, he questions, among other things, the judge’s jurisdiction.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is on trial again. The trial of the Kremlin critic began at the IK-6 high-security prison camp in Melekhovo, where Navalny is imprisoned. It is located about 235 kilometers east of Moscow. This time, Navalny was accused of inciting and financing extremism and founding an extremist organization, among other things. He faces a prison sentence of 30 years.
The trial was closed to the public – journalists were not allowed into the courtroom. Although they were able to follow the proceedings via a video transmission from a nearby room, the sound was barely intelligible, according to Reuters news agency. Navalny spoke for about three minutes. He questioned the jurisdiction of the judge, who was at a Moscow court but tried him in a penal colony far from the capital. Navalny’s parents had also traveled to Melechowo, but they weren’t allowed into the courtroom either.
Navalny was detained for more than two years
The Kremlin declined to comment. “We do not follow this process,” said presidential office spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Navalny was treated after poisoning at the Berlin Charité in 2020. After recovering, he returned to Russia in January 2021, was immediately arrested and then sentenced to nine years in prison for “fraud”. The 47-year-old blamed the Kremlin for the poisoning and spoke of a politically motivated process.
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