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Aleksei Navalny was detained on his way to a rally in Moscow.
Aleksei Navalny was detained on his way to a rally in Moscow.

Live Updates: Aleksei Navalny Detained

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-- Kremlin opponent Aleksei Navalny has been detained by police while trying to reach an unsanctioned rally in Moscow against his December 30 conviction in a fraud case. He was trying to reach the protest near the Kremlin despite being under house arrest.

-- Russian riot police have deployed in Moscow's Manezh Square, near the Kremlin, where thousands of demonstrators at an unsanctioned rally are protesting a court ruling against Navalny.

-- A Russian court found Navalny and his brother Oleg guilty. Oleg will get 3 1/2 years in a prison colony while Aleksei has been given a 3 1/2-year suspended sentence.

-- Speaking after the verdict, Navalny called on Russians to take to the streets. He said the state had taken to "torture" of family members. Other activists have compared the sentence of his brother to "hostage-taking."

-- Prosecutors claimed Navalny and his brother stole about 31 million rubles ($520,000) from the Russian affiliate of Yves Rocher, a French cosmetics firm. They were both also fined 500,000 rubles ($8,500) each and ordered to pay 4.4 million rubles ($70,000) in compensation to one of the companies they were charged with defrauding.

-- The verdict was originally scheduled for January 15, but in a surprise move authorities moved the date to December 30. Some suspect the change of timing is to distract from a protest being organized on January 15. The official holiday season begins on January 1 in Russia.

NOTE: Times according to Moscow time.

14:24 30.12.2014

Manezh Square two hours before scheduled unsanctioned demonstration.

14:21 30.12.2014

According to Interfax, a source says prosecutors will file an appeal against the Navalny sentences today because they are "too soft."

"The source said the final decision will be made in the next few days as soon as the prosecutors get a complete text of the sentence. "

13:50 30.12.2014

According to a local activist, some 200 have gathered to protest in Ekaterinburg.

13:31 30.12.2014

13:27 30.12.2014

Earlier in the day a court spokesman had said the verdict reading was moved up two weeks because the decision was "ready."

13:11 30.12.2014

12:47 30.12.2014

"My sense is that this reflects a perennial uncertainly in the government about quite what to do with Navalny and as a result is an inadequate and incoherent compromise between different camps or schools of thought, a reflection of division and lack of confidence rather than particular subtlety or a belief that Navalny no longer matters."

12:28 30.12.2014

Authorities in Moscow have issued a stern warning against unsanctioned protests in Moscow tonight.

Via Interfax:

"In accordance with our law, all unauthorized actions will be suppressed by law enforcement agencies. There is no other alternative," Alexei Mayorov, head of the Moscow department for security and the fight against corruption, told Interfax on Tuesday.

11:55 30.12.2014

In addition to the barricades surrounding Manezh Square, "a lot" of police have been called up. So far, 18,000 have said on Facebook that they will be protesting tonight.

11:10 30.12.2014

Police have completely cordoned off Manezh Square, the area where opposition leaders have called for demonstrations tonight.

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