Russian court prepares way for new trial against jailed Kremlin foe Navalny

MOSCOW (AP) — A Moscow court has set a new date for a hearing paving the way for another trial of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny that could keep him in prison for decades. The Moscow City Court had initially scheduled a preliminary hearing on Wednesday to discuss technical issues related to the trial of the Kremlin’s arch foe, but moved it to next Tuesday without explaining the reason. Navalny has said that the new extremism charges which he rejected as “absurd” could keep him in prison for another 30 years. The accusations against Navalny come as Russian authorities are conducting a stepped-up crackdown on dissent amid Moscow’s military action in Ukraine, which Navalny has harshly criticized.