Several Russian cities witnessed protests today organized by the supporters of opposition activist Alexei Navalny, condemning his arrest and corruption.
Reuters reported that witnesses saw security forces detaining 238 of Navalny's supporters during protests that took place in various areas, denouncing Russian President Vladimir Putin and calling for change. Among those arrested was Lyubov Sobol, Navalny's lawyer, about an hour before the scheduled protest at Pushkin Square in downtown Moscow, where approximately four thousand people participated, according to the Russian Interior Ministry. Simultaneously, mobile phone and internet services in the country slowed down, which appeared to be a step taken by the authorities to limit the protests.
A large police presence was deployed in central Moscow, and activists were arrested at subway station exits; however, this did not prevent thousands from gathering and raising slogans denouncing the arrests.
For her part, Yulia Navalnaya, Alexei Navalny's wife, announced her intention to protest in Moscow for her husband, who "never surrenders."
The call for nationwide protests came less than a week after Navalny was arrested and sentenced to 30 days in jail immediately upon his return to Russia last Sunday, accused of violating the terms of a suspended prison sentence against him previously. The Russian opposition figure accused the authorities of fabricating cases against him and claimed that President Vladimir Putin ordered his poisoning with the Soviet-era nerve agent "Novichok" last summer, which necessitated his transfer to Germany for treatment.
In the midst of this new confrontation with the Kremlin, Navalny's supporters released a two-hour investigative video immediately after his arrest, claiming to reveal details about Putin's and his associates' corruption. The film, uploaded to YouTube and garnering over 60 million views, included information about an opulent palace that the producers claim belongs to Putin in the Gelendzhik resort on the Black Sea in southern Russia, asserting that its cost amounted to $1.3 billion—a claim the Kremlin denied.
The Kremlin has rejected calls from the United States and its Western allies for the release of Navalny.
