Russia charges jailed dissident Navalny with 'vandalism'

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny on Friday said prosecutors had brought new criminal charges against him that could see an extension to his prison sentence, which already totals more than 30 years.

Navalny, who galvanized major protests in Russia before he was jailed in 2021, said the charges cited Article 214 of the penal code, which covers vandalism.

What Navalny said about the charges

"I have no idea what article 214 is, and there's nowhere to look. You'll know before I do," Navalny said on his Telegram messaging channel.

"They really do initiate a new criminal case against me every three months. Rarely does an inmate confined to a solitary cell for over a year have such a vibrant social and political existence," he added.

A court last convicted Navalny in August on charges relating to extremist activity and sentenced to an additional 19 years on top of more than 11 he was already serving. He is regularly sent to a solitary punishment cell, having spent at least 266 days in one. 

Navalny rejects all the charges against him as being politically motivated as part of an effort to silence him.

Who is Alexei Navalny?

Navalny is the best-known figure in Russia's fragmented opposition , although his political movement has been outlawed.

Many of his political colleagues have been jailed or fled abroad after a crackdown on internal dissent since President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine in February last year.

Navalny, who has complained of a series of health complications, communicates with the outside world through his lawyers. Three of his legal team were arrested in October and placed on a register of "terrorists and extremists."

The 47-year-old was immediately arrested after he returned to Russia in 2021 from Germany, where he had been treated for a near-fatal poisoning. He and independent investigators say the poisoning was carried out by the Russian state.

rc/wmr (AFP, Reuters)