Russia detains Navalny

MOSCOW: Russian authorities on Wednesday arrested opposition leader Alexei Navalny and targeted his allies with a criminal probe in an apparent attempt to crush a new protest wave.

Navalny faces up to 30 days in jail for calls to stage an "unauthorised" rally, his spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said, adding a court hearing in Moscow had begun.

The latest crackdown on Russia’s opposition politicians came as they fight to get on the ballot for the Moscow parliament elections in September amid falling approval ratings for President Vladimir Putin.

They have however been disqualified on what critics say are spurious grounds.

Putin’s top opponent Navalny and other anti-Kremlin politicians threatened to stage a major rally on July 27, near the mayor’s office, unless Moscow authorities registered opposition candidates.