Rare protests across Russia rattle the Kremlin
Hundreds arrested in anti-corruption demonstrations; reaction from Matthew Rojansky, director of the Kennan Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center
MOSCOW – Twelve people working for prominent opposition leader Alexei Navalny's anti-corruption fund have been jailed following their arrests in the group's office during nationwide protests at the weekend.
"This is an obvious attempt to disrupt the work of the organization," said Kira Yarmysh, a spokesperson for the Anti-Corruption Fund.
Eleven of the 17 detained were sentenced to seven days in jail while Leonid Volkov, who is leading Navalny's presidential campaign, was given 10 days for failing to respond to police orders, according Yarmysh.
That sentence was handed down by a Moscow court Tuesday.
Police arrested more than 1,000 people across Russia on Sunday during large protests called by Navalny against corruption. Navalny himself was arrested immediately after arriving at a demonstration in Moscow and sentenced to 15 days in prison Monday.
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