MOSCOW (AP) – A Russian court on Thursday rejected the arrest warrant of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, while authorities detained several of his allies and warned social media companies after tens of thousands wandered the streets of more than 100 Russian cities last weekend demanding his release.
Appearing in court via video from prison, Navalny denounced criminal proceedings against him as part of the government’s efforts to intimidate the opposition.
“You will not be able to scare tens of millions of people who have been robbed by that government,” he said. “Yes, now you have the power to handcuff me, but it won’t last forever.”
Navalny, 44, the most notorious critic of President Vladimir Putin’s government, was arrested on January 17 on his return from Germany, where he spent five months recovering from nervous breakdowns that he blames on the Kremlin. Russian authorities have denied the allegations.
Navalny was arrested and jailed for 30 days at the request of the Russian penitentiary service, which accused him of violating the probation conditions of his suspended sentence in a 2014 money laundering conviction, which was rejected as politically conducted. He is currently facing charges in two separate criminal investigations.
Before the Moscow Region Court rejected his recent arrest, defense lawyers argued that while in rehabilitation in Germany, Navalny could not register with the authorities, according to the requirements of the probation period. His lawyers also accused Navalny’s rights of fair trial of being repeatedly violated during his arrest.
Navalny described his imprisonment after a previous court hearing quickly held at a police station as a mockery of justice.
“It was a demonstrative iniquity meant to scare me and everyone else,” he told a Moscow court.
Navalny’s supporters are holding a new round of rallies for Sunday. Police on Wednesday searched Navalny’s apartment, a rented house where his wife, Yulia, and the residences of several of his associates and supporters lived.
Navalny’s brother, Oleg Navalny, his main ally, Lyubov Sobol, Dr. Anastasia Vasilyeva of the Alliance of Physicians supported by Navalny and Maria Alyokhina of the punk collective Pussy Riot were detained for 48 hours as part of a criminal investigation into the alleged violations of coronavirus. regulations during last Saturday’s protests.
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said searches and detentions were a legitimate part of police efforts to investigate alleged violations during the events.
“Law enforcement agencies are doing their job,” Peskov said during a conference with reporters. “There have been numerous violations of Russian law and law enforcement agencies are at work.”
Moscow police issued a public notice on Thursday not to join the protests on Sunday, warning that officers will act decisively to disperse unsanctioned rallies and bring participants to justice.
Also Thursday, Russian prosecutors issued warnings to Facebook, Google, Twitter, TikTok and Russian social networks, asking them to block calls for more protests.
“The state does not want social networks to become a platform for promoting such illegal actions,” Peskov said.
Asked whether a refusal to remove such content could lead the Russian authorities to block the platforms, Peskov said it was up to the relevant government agencies to consider an answer.
“All the pros and cons will be weighed and, if necessary, the measures provided by law will be taken,” he said.
Earlier this week, Roskomnadzor, a Russian state communications watchdog, said he would fine Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube and two Russian social networks for not blocking calls for minors to join Saturday’s protests. .
Facebook, Google and TikTok did not respond to requests for comment on the Russian authorities’ action. Twitter declined to comment to The Associated Press on Thursday.
Also Thursday, the Russian Committee of Inquiry said it had opened a criminal investigation against Navalny’s top strategist Leonid Volkov, accusing him of encouraging minors to participate in unauthorized rallies. Volkov, who is currently abroad, has denied the allegations.
“The streets must speak now. There is nothing else “, Volkov wrote on Twitter after rejecting Navalny’s call, repeating the call to the Russians to come into force on Sunday.
In a challenge to Putin two days after Navalny’s arrest, his organization released an extensive video report on a coastal palace complex that was allegedly built for the president. It has been viewed over 98 million times, still causing dissatisfaction.
Demonstrations calling for Navalny’s release took place in more than 100 cities across the country last Saturday, a powerful show of growing anger at the Kremlin. Nearly 4,000 people were reported detained at the protests, and some were fined and sentenced to prison.
Speaking at Thursday’s court hearing, Navalny thanked his supporters and said: “I am the last barrier that prevents our country from slipping into degradation.”
Navalny fell into a coma while on a domestic flight from Siberia to Moscow on August 20. He was transferred from a hospital in Siberia to a hospital in Berlin two days later. Laboratories in Germany, France and Sweden, as well as tests by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, have determined that he was exposed to the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok.
Russian authorities have refused to open a full criminal investigation, citing a lack of evidence that Navalny was poisoned.
Navalny’s arrest and harsh police protests have drawn widespread criticism from the West and calls for his release.
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Associated Press business writer Kelvin Chan from London contributed to the report.