FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is seen on a screen via video link from a penal colony during a preliminary hearing at the Moscow City Court in a new criminal case against Navalny on numerous charges, including the creation of an extremist organization, in Moscow, Russia, May 31, 2023. Moscow City Court/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Melekhovo, Russia — A Russian court on Friday sentenced jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny to 19 additional years behind bars on extremism charges, his spokesperson said.
“Alexey Navalny was sentenced to 19 years at a maximum security penal colony,” spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said.
An AFP journalist watching the court session in a press center at his prison said Navalny smiled as the judge read the verdict and hugged another defendant before the transmission was cut.