The Russian court rejected Navalny's appeal to 19 years in prison

A Russian court rejected Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny's appeal against a 19-year prison sentence on charges of extremism.

On August 4, the judges of the Moscow City Court sentenced Navalny to 19 years in prison, and his earlier sentences will be served concurrently in Russia's strictest prison regime.

Navalny, his allies, human rights groups and Western governments point out that all the accusations are politically motivated, reports Radio Free Europe.

The First Court of Appeal in Moscow confirmed the sentence on September 26 at a hearing held behind closed doors, and only the reading of the verdict was public.

Navalny, who has accused the Kremlin of keeping him behind bars for life to prevent Russians from expressing dissent, took part in the proceedings via video link.

The charges against Navalny are seen as retaliation for his efforts to expose what he describes as pervasive lawlessness, corruption and repression by Putin and his political system.

Navalny has been Russia's most vocal opposition figure in the past decade and incited major anti-government protests before he was jailed.