Russia detains allies of jailed opposition chief Alexei Navalny

Several allies and supporters of Russian opposition chief Alexei Navalny have been detained in Moscow early Thursday after mass protests final Saturday demanding his launch from jail drew tens of 1000’s to the streets in over 100 Russian cities.
Navalny’s prime ally Lyubov Sobol, Dr. Anastasia Vasilyeva from the Alliance of Doctors union backed by Navalny and Maria Alyokhina from the Pussy Riot punk collective have been detained for 48 hours together with Navalny’s brother Oleg.

All 4 are reported to be suspects in a prison probe into alleged violations of coronavirus rules through the mass rally in Moscow. The raids got here 4 days earlier than new protests that Navalny’s supporters have known as for Sunday.
The 44-year-old Navalny, probably the most well-known critic of President Vladimir Putin’s authorities, was arrested January 17 upon his return from Germany, the place he spent 5 months recovering from nerve-agent poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin. Russian authorities have rejected the accusations.
Police block the road throughout a protest towards the jailing of opposition chief Alexei Navalny in Moscow, Russia, Saturday, Jan. 23, 2021. (AP)
The in a single day detentions of his supporters got here after greater than a dozen raids on flats and workplaces of Navalny’s household, associates and supporters in connection to the probe. Searched places included Navalny’s condominium, the place police detained his brother, and a rented condominium the place Navalny’s spouse, Yulia, has been dwelling.
Also Thursday, Russia’s Investigative Committee stated it opened a prison probe towards Navalny’s prime strategist Leonid Volkov, accusing him of encouraging minors to take part in unauthorized rallies.
In an extra problem to Putin, two days after Navalny’s arrest, his organisation launched an intensive video report on a palatial seaside compound allegedly constructed for Putin. It has been seen over 98 million instances, additional stoking discontent.
Demonstrations calling for Navalny’s launch happened in additional than 100 cities throughout the nation final Saturday, a powerful present of rising anger towards the Kremlin. Nearly 4,000 individuals have been reported arrested at these protests.
Navalny fell right into a coma whereas aboard a home flight from Siberia to Moscow on August 20. He was transferred from a hospital in Siberia to a Berlin hospital two days later. Labs in Germany, France and Sweden, and checks by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, established that he was uncovered to the Soviet-era Novichok nerve agent.
Russian authorities have refused to open a full-fledged prison inquiry, citing a scarcity of proof that Navalny was poisoned.
Navalny’s arrest and the cruel police actions on the protests have introduced broad criticism from the West and requires his launch.