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Russian Authorities Move Lebedev Out Of Isolation


25 August 2005 -- Russian authorities moved jailed Russian tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovskii's business partner Platon Lebedev back to a regular cell today after almost a week in solitary confinement.

Prison system chief Yurii Kalinin said Lebedev was moved out of the isolation cell where he had been transferred last week for a seven-day period.

Khodorkovskii announced on 23 August that he was on a hunger strike to protest the transfer.

A lawyer for Khodorkovskii, Anton Drel, today said his client would end his hunger strike if Lebedev was transferred back to a regular cell.

Khordorkovskii and Lebedev -- both former executives at the Yukos oil company -- have been sentenced to nine years in jail on charges of fraud and tax evasion. Critics say Khodorkovskii is the victim of a Kremlin-inspired campaign to punish him for his political ambitions.

(AP/Reuters)

See also:

Khodorkovskii Sentenced To Nine Years In Prison

Analysis: After Khodorkovskii, What Next For Oligarchs?

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