Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny embraces his wife Yulia after he was freed by Regional court of Kirov region following a protest of prosecutor's office in
By Gabriela Baczynska, Reuters
KIROV,
Russia -- Russia unexpectedly freed opposition leader Alexei Navalny on bail on
Friday, bending to the will of thousands of protesters who denounced his five year jail sentence as a crude attempt by President
Vladimir Putin to silence him.
In a
ruling that points to Kremlin uncertainty over how to handle Navalny's case and
revived protests, a judge approved an unusual prosecution request to release
him while he awaits the outcome of an appeal.
The
anti-corruption campaigner's movements will be restricted to Moscow but he proclaimed the ruling, one day
after he was convicted of theft, as a victory for people power.
"I am
very grateful to all the people who supported us, all the people who went to
(protest in Moscow 's)
Manezh Square
and other squares," the 37-year-old said, rushing across the court to hug
his wife after he was released from a glass courtroom cage.
People
poured onto the streets of big Russian cities to protest on Thursday evening
after Navalny was convicted of stealing at least $494,000 from a timber firm
when he was advising the Kirov
regional governor in 2009.
Police
said more than 200 people were detained in St Petersburg
and Moscow
although there were no big clashes.
Navalny
says the case was politically motivated and intended to sideline him as a
political threat to Putin, even though his support is limited outside the big
cities and opinion polls show the president is still Russia 's most popular politician.
Navalny
led anti-Putin protests which attracted tens of thousands last year before they
started to fade when the former KGB spy was elected to a six-year third term as
president.
The
decision to release him could be a political maneuver to head off social
unrest. Some political analysts said the Kremlin, and the business and security
community around it, looked divided over Navalny.
Channel Four's Jonathan Rugman reports;
"There
really is a split in the elite," one analyst, Ella Paneyakh, said in an
online comment. "And it seems there will be no peaceful outcome."
The
Kremlin has not responded to calls for comment on the verdict and said nothing
about Friday's ruling.
The United States and European Union voiced concern
over Navalny's conviction, saying it raised questions about the rule of law and
Russia 's
treatment of Putin's opponents.
The White
House called it part of a "disturbing trend aimed at suppressing
dissent."
Russian
shares fell on Thursday on concerns the conviction may provoke unrest, after a
case that led to comparisons with the political "show trials" under
Soviet leader Josef Stalin.
At least
3,000 people protested near the Kremlin in Moscow on Thursday under a heavy police
presence, blocking main streets and shouting "Freedom" and
"Putin is a thief."
Police
plunged into the crowd to pluck out people holding Navalny portraits. A police
official said about 50 were detained, but activists said the number had reached
169 as smaller groups continued to protest past midnight.
.
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