Russia Arrests over 1,000 Following Dissident Navalny’s Conviction

Russian police detained over 1,000 people Tuesday after thousands of protesters took to the streets across Russia to denounce the prison sentence of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny announced that day.

Security officials detained roughly 1,400 protestors across Russia on February 2, according to the detention tracker OVD-Info. An estimated 828 people were detained in the national capital, Moscow, where Navalny was sentenced Tuesday to serve two years and eight months in a penal colony for “violating a 2014 suspended sentence for embezzlement by skipping out on check-ins with Russia’s prison service while in Germany,” the Moscow Times reported.

A Russian citizen, Navalny was in Germany for the past five months convalescing after falling ill on a Russian domestic flight in August. He flew to Germany for treatment shortly afterward. European doctors familiar with Navalny’s case have attributed his sudden illness on August 20 to exposure to the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok; Navalny has since accused the Kremlin of ordering his poisoning. The Russian government denies involvement with the incident.

Moscow police detained Navalny upon his return to Russia from Germany on January 17 accusing him of violating his parole terms, a charge upheld by Tuesday’s sentencing. Navalny’s team of supporters organized two mass protests across Russia on January 23 and January 31 to demand his release from jail. Navalny’s allies again urged his supporters to protest his prison sentence Tuesday, with an estimated 2,000-3,000 protesters heeding the call and pouring into central Moscow despite security forces’ attempts to barricade the capital.

“Riot police in black balaclavas formed columns in popular tourist spots like the square in front of the Bolshoi Theatre, Red Square, and the trendy Chistye Prudy district as the authorities prepared for possible unrest following Navalny’s team call for his supporters to take to the streets following the guilty verdict,” the Moscow Times reported Wednesday. “Baza — a telegram channel with close links to Russian security services — said that a total of 8,304 police from different departments were mobilized throughout Tuesday.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitriy Peskov on Wednesday defended the heavy police presence in Moscow on Tuesday evening, describing it as “justified.”

“In general, holding unauthorized rallies arouses concerns and confirms that harsh police steps are justified in accordance with the law,” Peskov told reporters. “The only thing that I can say: no doubt, this activity should be curbed by the law enforcement agencies in every way.”

Пассажир такси крикнул оскорбление из окна машины. Полицейские избили и его, и таксиста pic.twitter.com/hkmjC4gCXh

— Открытые медиа (@OpenMedia_io) February 2, 2021

Footage circulating on Twitter on Tuesday appeared to show Moscow police “stopping taxis and cars that were honking in solidarity with the protesters,” according to the Moscow Times. Pekov responded to this Wednesday.

“As for these citizens in cars, this [detention] came after provocative calls and insults,” he said. “That’s why here everyone needs to evaluate and qualify the events objectively and unbiasedly.”