23:18, 18 January 2021

Court arrests Alexei Navalny

A man holds a poster with the words "For Navalny!"; people standing near the police station where Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is being held. Moscow, January 18, 2021. Photo: REUTERS / Maxim Shemetov

Today, the Khimki City Court has arrested oppositionist Alexei Navalny until February 15, his press secretary and advocate report.

"The court has arrested Alexei Navalny for 30 days. Until February 15," Kira Yarmysh, the oppositionist's press secretary, wrote on Twitter. "Alexei Navalny has been taken in custody for 30 days until February 15, 2021," wrote advocate Vadim Kobzev in the same social network.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 17, Alexei Navalny, who arrived from Berlin to Moscow, was detained at the Sheremetyevo Airport. The plane on which the oppositionist was returning home was supposed to land at Vnukovo, but was redirected to another airport. Meanwhile, activists from the Alexei Navalny's headquarters from different regions of Russia, including Krasnodar and Volgograd, gathered at the Vnukovo Airport to meet the politician. In Southern Russia, the activists responded to the detention of the politician with pickets. Instagram users criticized the trial in the Alexei Navalny's case held at the building of the ROVD (District Interior Division).

Prior to the 2018 presidential election, the Navalny's team opened 63 regional offices, including in Southern Russia – in Astrakhan, Volgograd, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don and Stavropol. Navalny's volunteers are called "idealists," says the article by the "Caucasian Knot" entitled "Navalny's volunteers: pre-paid PR or a new political force?"

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 18, 2021 at 05:10 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.