Kremlin Critic Navalny Says He Is Facing New Charges

Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny, who is in prison in Russia, could face 15 more years under a new charge, he said Tuesday.

Navalny took to social media to say now has been charged with starting an extremist organization.

“Not even eight days have passed since my nine-year, high-security sentence came into force, and today the investigator showed up again and formally charged me with a new case,” Navalny said on Twitter.

“It turns out that I created an extremist group in order to incite hatred toward officials and oligarchs. And when they put me in jail, I dared to be disgruntled about it and called for rallies. For that, they’re supposed to add up to 15 more years to my sentence,” he said.

There has been no official announcement about new charges against Navalny.

Navalny has been targeted by the Kremlin for years, including a possible poisoning in 2020 while campaigning in Siberia. After the incident, he went to Germany for treatment but was arrested on his return to Russia in 2021.

The Kremlin denies poisoning Navalny.

Navalny has been outspoken about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, calling it “stupid” and “built on lies.”

Navalny, 45, is serving a two-and-a-half-year sentence in a prison camp east of Moscow on a 2014 embezzlement conviction.

Last year, Navalny’s foundation was outlawed after being labeled “extremist” by authorities, who blocked tens of websites run by his network, claiming they were distributing propaganda.
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