Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is scheduled to stand on trial Monday on new charges of "extremism." A court spokesperson stated the proceeding would take place behind closed doors.
The decision would mean media outlets would be excluded from proceedings against the top critic of Russia's President Vladimir Putin. Still, they were initially given access to a video feed with barely intelligible audio.
When the video feed was provided, Navalny was looking thin, had cropped hair, and was dressed in a black prison uniform. He was also seen standing and speaking for three minutes. He unsuccessfully demanded access to the courtroom for his parents, as well as contested the authority of the Moscow court judge trying him on location at the IK-6 penal colony in Melekhovo, about 235 km (145 miles) east of Moscow.
Navalny was arrested in 2021 in Russia after returning from Germany to recover from an alleged Kremlin-sanctioned poison attack in 2020, which the Kremlin denied.
It was earlier reported his prison stay could possibly be extended by up to 30 years.
Critics Accuse Moscow of Breaking Navalny
Prosecutors raised unspecified security concerns after allegedly receiving evidence about a planned "provocation," which Navalny's supporters denied.
"What can be more secure than a strict-regime penal colony where no one is even allowed into the hall?" his spokesperson Kira Yarmysh tweeted.
Other Navalny supporters accuse the Kremlin of trying to break him in prison and silence his criticism of Putin. However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters they deny the notion of persecuting Navalny. "We are not following this trial," he insisted.
Despite being imprisoned, Navalny can post on social media through his lawyers and allies. He appealed to Russians on Instagram to "join forces in the fight against Putin's lies and Kremlin hypocrisy."
"Putin is afraid of any word of truth," he said.
Navalny also plans to "conduct an election campaign against war" and "against Putin." "[It is a] long, stubborn, exhausting but fundamentally important campaign where we will turn people against the war," read a statement on his website.
Russia is scheduled to hold its presidential election in 2024, and Putin is yet to confirm if he will contest the race.
