Alexei Navalny detained again after release from 30-day jail sentence

Sept. 25 (UPI) -- Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was detained again the same day he was released after serving a 30-day prison sentence.

Navalny's ally, Leonid Volkov, said Navalny was taken to a police station seconds after he walked out of jail Monday.

Volkov said Navalny was charged with violating protest laws, the same charges that resulted in the preceding 30-day sentence.

Natalia Zviagina, the director of Amnesty International in Russia, described Navalny as a "prisoner of conscience," as the organization noted he has spent 110 days in jail on six separate convictions throughout the past year.

"Navalny's name has long been synonymous with peaceful protest and tightening restrictions on freedom of assembly in Russia," Zviagina said.

Navalny's most recent stint in jail came after he was arrested in August for organizing an unauthorized protest against Russian President Vladimir Putin in January.

Police said they didn't arrest him immediately in January because they were unable to locate him, but Navalny said he believed he was detained to prevent him from organizing a Sept. 9 protest against government plans to raise the age of retirement.