Russian opposition leader Navalny put in solitary confinement while imprisoned

Russian dissident Alexey Navalny has been transferred to solitary confinement according to tweets sent by himself and staff.

Navalny is currently serving a years-long prison sentence for charges that include fraud, which he says were created as a political move to keep him away from his role as Russian opposition leader.

Navalny wrote ironically in a statement, “Congratulations, I’ve moved up one more level in the hierarchy of prison offenders.”

He said that while in a cramped cell-type space he is allowed only two books and has a small budget for items from the prison commissary, CNN reported.

His spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said on Twitter, “Alexey Navalny was transferred to a cell-type room. It’s like a punishment cell, only not for 15 days, but forever.”

According to Russian law, imprisonment in a cell of this type can only last a maximum of six months.

He was transferred in June from a penal colony where he was serving time to a higher security prison in the Vladimir Region.