Ambulance called for former Navalny staffer facing ‘extremism’ charges after hours-long court session with no food or breaks

Ksenia Fadeyeva, the former head of opposition politician Alexey Navalny’s regional office in the Siberian city of Tomsk, had to have an ambulance called for her after she began feeling unwell during an all-day court session on Wednesday, according to her supporters.

Fadeyeva is standing trial on “extremism” charges for her involvement with Navalny’s movement. After the prosecution finished presenting its argument, the judge in the case began insisting on 12-hour court sessions, during which Fadeyeva is not allowed to take a break or eat. On Wednesday evening, according to hearing attendees, she and her lawyer began feeling unwell during a session, but the court denied their request to postpone the hearing.

The court also refused to allow several of the defense’s witnesses to take the stand and scheduled closing arguments for December 29, giving the defense only a week to make their case after allocating four months to the prosecution.