Navalny’s wife fined after detention in Moscow

A court in Moscow fined Yulia Navalnaya, wife of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, 20,000 rubles (approximately $265) on Monday after she was detained during a demonstration in support of her husband, The Associated Press reports.

Navalnaya was among the thousands of protesters across Russia who were detained on Sunday while demanding Navalny’s freedom. She was also detained during another protest one week earlier.

According to the AP, Navalnaya was charged with participating in an unauthorized rally. Her lawyer, Svetlana Davydova, told Russian media that they planned on appealing Monday’s ruling.

Navalny was arrested earlier on Jan. 17 after returning to Russia from Germany, where he had been treated for poisoning. Navalnaya had been permitted to travel with her husband as he received treatment. Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin have denied any involvement in Navalny’s poisoning, in which Germany said a Soviet-era nerve agent called Novichok was used.

The Russian government warned earlier this month that Navalny had violated the terms of a previous suspended sentence for embezzlement charges when he did not return from Germany earlier. Navalny and international pundits have argued the charges against him are politically motivated.

Moscow’s crackdown on protests has drawn condemnation from the international community. Last Tuesday, the Group of 7 (G-7) countries, which includes the U.S., released a joint statement rebuking Russia’s actions.

“The violent suppression by police forces of the right of individuals to express their opinion is unacceptable,” the statement read. “These events confirm a continuous negative pattern of shrinking space for the opposition, civil society, human rights defenders and independent voices in Russia.”