Russia detains top Navalny aides

Navalny's top ally Lyubov Sobol, Dr. Anastasia Vasilyeva from the Alliance of Doctors union backed by Navalny and Maria Alyokhina from the Pussy Riot punk collective were detained for 48 hours along with Navalny's brother Oleg.

Moscow: Several allies and supporters of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny were detained in Moscow early on Thursday after mass protests last Saturday demanding his release from prison drew tens of thousands to the streets in over 100 Russian cities.

Navalny’s top ally Lyubov Sobol, Dr. Anastasia Vasilyeva from the Alliance of Doctors union backed by Navalny and Maria Alyokhina from the Pussy Riot punk collective were detained for 48 hours along with Navalny’s brother Oleg.

All four are reported to be suspects in a criminal probe into alleged violations of coronavirus regulations during the mass rally in Moscow. The raids came four days before new protests that Navalny’s supporters have called for on Sunday.

Forty-four-year-old Navalny, the most well-known critic of President Vladimir Putin’s government, was arrested January 17 upon his return from Germany, where he spent five months recovering from nerve-agent poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin. Russian authorities have rejected the accusations.

The overnight detentions of his supporters came after more than a dozen raids on apartments and offices of Navalny’s family, associates and supporters in connection to the probe. Searched locations included Navalny’s apartment, where police detained his brother, and a rented apartment where Navalny’s wife, Yulia, has been living.

Also on Thursday, Russia’s Investigative Committee said it had opened a criminal probe against Navalny’s top strategist Leonid Volkov, accusing him of encouraging minors to participate in unauthorised rallies.

Demonstrations calling for Navalny’s release took place in more than 100 cities across the nation last Saturday, a strong show of rising anger toward the Kremlin. Nearly 4,000 people were reported arrested at those protests.

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