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Navalny Gets 30 Days In Jail For Anti-Putin Protests

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Aleksei Navalny arrives at the courthouse in Moscow on May 15.
Aleksei Navalny arrives at the courthouse in Moscow on May 15.

MOSCOW -- A Moscow court has ordered opposition politician Aleksei Navalny to be jailed for 30 days over nationwide protests against President Vladimir Putin.

In a ruling on May 15, the Tver district court said that Navalny repeatedly violated regulations for organizing public gatherings.

The court later found him guilty of refusing to comply with police and sentenced him to 15 days.

However, Navalny, who called the accusations against him "ridiculous," will serve both sentences at the same time.

"They gave me 30 days, and the 'trial' is still going," Navalny tweeted after the initial ruling.

The vocal Putin foe was one of hundreds of people apprehended in Moscow and over 1,600 people detained nationwide during May 5 demonstrations organized by supporters to protest against Putin's inauguration to a new six-year term two days later.

Navalny was released hours later but was ordered not to leave Moscow while the cases against him were pending.

He already served several jail terms on charges related to organizing antigovernment protests, and was convicted twice on financial-crimes charges he says were trumped up by the Kremlin as retribution for his opposition to Putin.

Navalny was barred from taking part in the March 18 presidential election due to the convictions he and supporters contend were fabricated to keep him out of electoral politics.

Putin, who has been president or prime minister since 1999, was sworn in for a new six-year term on May 7 after a landslide victory in the election.

The vote was marred by allegations of fraud and what international observers said was the lack of a genuine choice.

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