A Russian court has upheld the five-year suspended sentence handed out to opposition activist Alexei Navalny.\u00a0 A retrial was held after an earlier conviction was overturned following a European Court of Human Rights ruling.\u00a0 Mr Navalny says the case was designed to prevent him standing in next year’s presidential election.<\/p>\n
He says he has lost 80% of his sight in one eye after having green antiseptic, which he said caused “chemical burns”, splashed in his face last week.<\/p>\n
It was the second time he has been attacked with zelyonka (“brilliant green” in English) this year. The antiseptic must have been mixed with something else to cause the burns to his right eye, the activist says.<\/p>\n
Mr Navalny and his team insist his conviction will not affect his ability to participate in the election.<\/p>\n
He has argued in the past that only those who are actually in prison are banned by the constitution from standing.<\/p>\n
The prominent anti-corruption campaigner is one of the foremost Russian critics of President Vladimir Putin.<\/p>\n
The ruling by a court in Kirov relates to Mr Navalny’s conviction for embezzlement for a timber deal. He was convicted again in February after a retrial, and Wednesday’s decision upholds the suspended five-year sentence.<\/p>\n
Source bbc<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"