Russia Jails Navalny’s Lawyers in Escalating Crackdown on Dissent

Three lawyers who represented the late Alexei Navalny receive prison sentences for alleged extremist activities, raising global concerns over human rights and the rule of law in Russia.

Vadim Kobzev, Alexei Liptser, and Igor Sergunin, lawyers for the late Alexei Navalny, were sentenced to 3.5 to 5.5 years in prison for allegedly aiding an extremist organization.
The closed-door trial accused the lawyers of transmitting Navalny’s messages to his associates and the public, a practice common in Russian prisons but deemed criminal by the court.
Rights groups and international leaders have condemned the sentences, citing them as a dangerous precedent that undermines the rule of law and deters legal defense for political dissidents.
Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, and his supporters believe the prosecution is part of a broader effort to silence dissent following Navalny’s death in an Arctic penal colony last year under unexplained circumstances.
Critics compare the crackdown on dissent to Stalin-era repression, with the Kremlin intensifying its targeting of opposition figures and their associates since the start of the Ukraine conflict.

United States Department of State

Amnesty International

Associated Press