Kremlin Opponent Aleksei Navalny Is Briefly Detained for Organizing Protests
- 6 years ago
Kremlin Opponent Aleksei Navalny Is Briefly Detained for Organizing Protests
22, 2018
MOSCOW — A prominent Russian opposition leader, Aleksei A. Navalny, said he was briefly detained by the police
on Thursday as the authorities initiated legal proceedings against him for organizing illegal protests.
Mr. Navalny also organized large-scale protests in June and in March,
but he could not fully take part in them because the police detained him each time.
Mr. Navalny said on Twitter that he had been detained by seven police officers as he left a dental clinic and
that he had been released after being informed of the proceedings against him.
The legal maneuvering was widely interpreted as a precautionary measure, intended to ensure
that Mr. Navalny could be safely tucked away, if need be, in the prelude to the Russian presidential election on March 18.
"I don’t understand what happened and why seven people detained me." Over the past decade, Mr. Navalny, 41, became Russia’s pre-eminent opposition figure by exposing corruption
and the lavish lifestyles of members of Mr. Putin’s inner circle.
Separately, Mr. Navalny’s campaign chief, Leonid Volkov, was detained at Sheremetyevo
International Airport near Moscow on Thursday and held at a police station.
22, 2018
MOSCOW — A prominent Russian opposition leader, Aleksei A. Navalny, said he was briefly detained by the police
on Thursday as the authorities initiated legal proceedings against him for organizing illegal protests.
Mr. Navalny also organized large-scale protests in June and in March,
but he could not fully take part in them because the police detained him each time.
Mr. Navalny said on Twitter that he had been detained by seven police officers as he left a dental clinic and
that he had been released after being informed of the proceedings against him.
The legal maneuvering was widely interpreted as a precautionary measure, intended to ensure
that Mr. Navalny could be safely tucked away, if need be, in the prelude to the Russian presidential election on March 18.
"I don’t understand what happened and why seven people detained me." Over the past decade, Mr. Navalny, 41, became Russia’s pre-eminent opposition figure by exposing corruption
and the lavish lifestyles of members of Mr. Putin’s inner circle.
Separately, Mr. Navalny’s campaign chief, Leonid Volkov, was detained at Sheremetyevo
International Airport near Moscow on Thursday and held at a police station.