Russia: Navalny faces up to five years in jail over alleged probation violation

The Lublinsky District Court is due to review Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny's five-year suspended sentence in Moscow, Wednesday. The activist is being tried for alleged embezzlement at the state timber company 'Kirovles,' during his time as an adviser of the governor of Kirov in 2009. The alleged probation violation involves accusations of him distributing leaflets. Navalny protests his innocence and claims the case is 'political.' The hearing on the Kirovles case was initially scheduled to start April 23, but the district court postponed it until May 13 on the grounds that Navalny had not been informed of the hearing beforehand. The court is due to decide whether to turn Navalny's suspended sentence into a jail sentence.