In brief
Three attorneys representing the late Alexei Navalny face lengthy prison terms for facilitating communication between him and his supporters.
In a startling verdict, a Russian court has sentenced three attorneys who represented the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny to prison for their involvement in what the government labels an extremist group. The ruling, handed down on Friday in the city of Petushki, reveals the Kremlin's ongoing efforts to stifle dissent even after Navalny's death in a penal colony last year.Vadim Kobzev, Igor Sergunin, and Aleksei Liptser, who were arrested in October 2023 while Navalny served time in a high-security facility, have become the latest casualties in a crackdown targeting the prominent political figure's associates. The court determined they were culpable for relaying Navalny's correspondence to his supporters, further tightening the grip on dissenting voices.Navalny, a significant threat to President Vladimir Putin’s regime, remained a public figure despite being imprisoned. His political movement was deemed extremist by authorities just ahead of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The sentences range from three and a half years for Sergunin, who admitted guilt, to five and a half years for Kobzev, who received the harshest punishment.The verdict has sparked outrage and calls for the lawyers' release from within opposition circles. Yulia Navalnaya, Navalny's widow, denounced the ruling, labeling the lawyers as political prisoners. Similarly, prominent ally Lyubov Sobol claimed the judicial decision was orchestrated by the Kremlin as an act of revenge against those loyal to Navalny until his death. The situation serves as a chilling reminder of the persistent risks faced by those who oppose the Kremlin's authority.
