Imprisoned Russian Opposition Leader Navalny Located In Penal Colony 3 Weeks After Contact Lost

MOSCOW (AP) — Associates of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said Monday that he has been located at a prison colony above the Arctic Circle nearly three weeks after contact with him was lost.

Navalny, the most prominent foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism. He had been imprisoned in the Vladimir region of central Russia, about 230 kilometers (140 miles) east of Moscow, but his lawyers said they had not been able to reach him since Dec. 6.

Alexey Navalny Never Wanted to Be a Dissident

The following article is adapted from The Dissident: Alexey Navalny, Profile of a Political Prisoner, to be released today by Twelve, an imprint of Hachette Book Group.

In the West during the Soviet era, Russian dissidents developed a certain celebrity aura. Andrei Sakharov and Yelena Bonner, for instance, were seen as fearless fighters, standing up to an evil empire and enduring long and painful exiles, repressions and other punishments meted out by the Communist regime. The refusenik Natan Sharansky, who served eight years in prison for high treason and espionage before being released in a prisoner exchange, became a member of the Israeli parliament and deputy prime minister. President George W. Bush even awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Russia orders suspension of Alexei Navalny’s organization

MOSCOW — Russian prosecutors on Monday suspended the activities of Alexei Navalny’s political organization ahead of a court ruling that could see the Kremlin critic’s movement branded “extremist.”

Documents shared by Navalny’s legal team state that his organization will not be allowed to publish material online, hold gatherings or participate in elections. 

‘It’s about surviving’: where next for Russia’s beleaguered opposition?

The future looked unspeakably grim for Alexei Navalny’s supporters before this week’s protests. Their charismatic leader was in prison and by his doctors’ accounts near death while the Kremlin was threatening to outlaw his entire movement. Sensing a looming apocalypse, one aide dubbed the protest: “The final battle between normal people and absolute evil.”

What followed was surprisingly normal: a core of tens of thousands of Navalny supporters rallied near the Kremlin, waving mobile phone torches and chanting “Putin is a thief!” The police stood back in Moscow (there was a violent crackdown in St Petersburg). For an evening, the crowd roved the streets of the capital at will.

Russia arrests ‘more than 1,700’ over pro-Navalny protests

Russian police rounded up nearly 1,800 protesters on Wednesday, according to a monitoring group, as supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny took to the streets to participate in rallies sparked by reports of his failing health in prison.

Allies of President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken opponent, who began a hunger strike three weeks ago over his alleged mistreatment by prison authorities, fear he could soon die and have demanded he is given proper medical care.

Russian Dissident Alexei Navalny Could Be Days From Death In Prison

Popular Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny could be just days from death following mysterious pains and a hunger strike in a notorious prison, his supporters warned Saturday.

“Alexei is dying ... it’s a question of days,” Navalny’s spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, said on Facebook.

“It’s totally, totally unfair, and totally inappropriate,” President Joe Biden told reporters Saturday when asked about Navalny’s situation.

The head of a doctors alliance posted the results of Navalny’s blood tests on Twitter, saying they indicate kidney damage that could lead to heart failure, Bloomberg reported.

Navalny, 44, returned to his home country in January after he was treated in a German hospital for nerve-agent poisoning, believed by American intelligence to have been carried out by Russia’s Federal Security Service.

Amnesty strips Navalny of ‘prisoner of conscience’ status

Amnesty International has stripped Alexey Navalny of the “prisoner of conscience” status it had given him, saying some of the Kremlin critic’s past comments were akin to hate speech.

In a statement sent to Al Jazeera on Wednesday, the rights group said it would however continue to “fight for his freedom” – referring to the 44-year-old’s current imprisonment in Moscow.

“Amnesty International took an internal decision to stop referring to [Alexey] Navalny as a prisoner of conscience in relation to comments he made in the past. Some of these comments, which Navalny has not publicly denounced, reach the threshold of advocacy of hatred, and this is at odds with Amnesty’s definition of a prisoner of conscience,” the statement said, without specifying what those comments were.

Pro-Navalny ‘flashlight’ protests light up Russian cities

MOSCOW — Supporters of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny came out to residential courtyards and shined their cellphone flashlights Sunday in a display of unity, despite efforts by Russian authorities to extinguish the illuminated protests.

Navalny’s team sent photos of small groups with lit-up cellphones in cities from Siberia to the Moscow region. It was unclear how many people participated overall.

No arrests were immediately reported. However, police detained nine people at a daytime demonstration in the city of Kazan calling for the release of political prisoners, according to OVD-Info, a human rights group that monitors political arrests.

Russia arrests thousands as crackdown on Navalny allies continues

Russian police detained thousands of people as protesters took to the streets across the country demanding the release of jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny.

At least 5,021 people were detained nationwide on Sunday, including 1,608 in Moscow, according to OVD-Info, a protest monitoring group.

Security forces detained Yulia Navalnaya, wife of Navalny, at a protest in Moscow, his supporters said on social media.

Navalny allies detained in Russia

Four prominent allies of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny were detained overnight in what appeared to be an effort from law enforcement to blunt more anti-government demonstrations scheduled for this weekend.

Authorities arrested Navalny’s brother Oleg Navalny; top ally Lyubov Sobol; Anastasia Vasilyeva, who is a member of the Navalny-supported Alliance of Doctors; and Maria Alyokhina, a member of the Pussy Riot punk band. The arrests were first confirmed by Ivan Zhdanov, another prominent opposition figure and the director of the Anti-Corruption Foundation.

Russian Court Rejects Putin Critic Alexei Navalny's Appeal; Allies Detained

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian court on Thursday rejected opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s appeal against his arrest while authorities detained several of his allies and issued warnings to social media companies after tens of thousands swarmed the streets in over 100 Russian cities last weekend demanding his release.

Speaking to court via video link from jail, Navalny denounced criminal proceedings against him as part of the government’s efforts to intimidate the opposition.

“You won’t succeed in scaring tens of millions of people who have been robbed by that government,” he said.

No-fly zone over Putin-linked palace is due to Nato spies, says FSB

Russia’s FSB security agency has confirmed it enforced a no-fly zone over the £1bn seaside palace that Vladimir Putin has assured the public he does not own. It said the restrictions were imposed last summer to protect the Black Sea coast from Nato spies. Coincidentally, that stretch of coastline also hid an opulent chateau of murky provenance boasting its own casino, skating rink and vineyard.

The Kremlin has been scrambling to explain away an investigation by Alexei Navalny into the 17,691 sq metre seaside mansion that was allegedly funded by a number of Putin’s friends and guarded by the government agencies that also protect Putin and his family. The investigation was released after Navalny, an opposition leader, was jailed and threatened with years in prison on charges he claims are political. the video has been viewed more than 95m times on YouTube.

Kremlin: U.S. encouraging Russians to break the law

MOSCOW — The spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin says the U.S. Embassy’s statements about the nationwide protests, in which more than 3,500 people reportedly were arrested, interfere in the country’s domestic affairs and encourage Russians to break the law.

Dmitry Peskov made the criticism on Sunday, a day after protests took place across the country demanding the release of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny, an anti-corruption activist who is Putin’s most well-known critic.

Putin condemns Navalny protests as Western concern grows

Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned as "illegal and dangerous" the mass rallies in support of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

Tens of thousands defied a heavy police presence to join the rallies across Russia on Saturday. More than 3,500 were detained, monitors say.

EU foreign ministers discussed the protests on Monday, but did not agree on further sanctions on Russia.

'The problem is Putin': protesters throng Russia's streets to support jailed Navalny

As riot police surged to retake Moscow’s Pushkin square on Saturday, all you could see of them from the crowd were their truncheons raised high, ready to strike. Then their black helmets came into view, and finally they pushed forward, driving waves of panicked Russians out on to the boulevards and side streets of the capital. “Respected citizens, the current event is illegal. We are doing everything to ensure your safety,” an officer repeated over a loudspeaker, despite all the evidence to the contrary.

Russia arrests thousands amid unprecedented pro-Navalny protests

Security forces detained more than 3,000 people and violently broke up rallies across Russia as tens of thousands of protesters ignored extreme cold and police warnings to demand the release of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Prosecutors in St Petersburg said in a statement late Saturday they were probing violations including “on the part of law enforcement” and the use of force against an unidentified woman.

The statement was released after local media published a video showing a middle-aged woman falling to the ground after being kicked by riot police.

Alexei Navalny ordered to be detained on return to Russia, say officials

Russia’s prison service says it has orders to detain Alexei Navalny, a statement made days before the opposition politician is due to return to Russia after recuperating abroad from a suspected FSB poisoning.

Navalny could face prison time when he gets off the plane in Moscow on Sunday. Officials said they would take him into custody for failing to appear for parole reviews after he was attacked with a novichok-style poison in August.

The assassination attempt left the opposition leader fighting for his life in a Siberian hospital before he was transferred to Germany for treatment.

Putin rejects Navalny poisoning allegations as 'falsification'

Vladimir Putin has denied Russia was behind the poisoning of the opposition leader Alexei Navalny, calling a recent investigation by Bellingcat a “falsification”.

“Who needs to poison him,” he said during a nationally televised press conference, denying that Russia’s FSB spy agency was involved. “If they’d wanted to [poison him] then they probably would have finished the job.”

Russian FSB hit squad poisoned Alexei Navalny, report says

An undercover hit squad working for Russia’s FSB spy agency poisoned the opposition activist Alexei Navalny in August, after shadowing him on multiple previous trips, the investigative website Bellingcat has claimed.

Citing “voluminous” telecoms and travel data, Bellingcat reported that the squad had secretly tracked Navalny since 2017. The operation apparently began after he announced plans to stand against Vladimir Putin in presidential elections.

EU sanctions senior Russians over Navalny poisoning

The European Union on Wednesday imposed sanctions on six senior Russians over the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

The assets of Alexander Bortnikov, the head of the Federal Security Service (FSB), will be frozen and he will face a travel ban. Also targeted are Sergei Kiriyenko, first deputy chief of staff in Vladimir Putin’s administration and a former prime minister; Kremlin official Andrei Yarin; deputy ministers of defense Alexei Krivoruchko and Pavel Popov; and Sergei Menyaylo, a presidential envoy to the Siberian Federal District — Navalny collapsed on a flight from the Siberian city of Tomsk.