The opposition leader flew back from Moscow to Germany on Sunday and was immediately detained by masked officers. He was held overnight at a police station in the city of Khimki, just north of Moscow.
Navalny was placed on the country’s federal wish list last month for violating probation conditions related to a 2014 conviction for fraud, which he dismissed as politically motivated.
The Russian Federal Criminal Service (FSIN) has demanded that a court replace his suspended sentence with a prison sentence. If the request is granted, Navalny will likely be sentenced to 3.5 years in prison.
Governments around the world have criticized Russia over Navalny’s arrest. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas have all called for his immediate release.
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