Russian Opposition Leader Loses Billionaire's Defamation Case
- Navalny defiant, says ruling will bolster June 12 protests
- Usmanov lawyer says Navalny’s accusations proved groundless
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A Russian court sided with billionaire Alisher Usmanov in his defamation lawsuit against opposition leader Alexey Navalny on Wednesday, ordering the politician to retract allegations about Usmanov.
Navalny in March released a YouTube video about Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, alleging that Usmanov and other business people donated luxury assets and money to a fund run by a university classmate of the head of government in what amounted to bribery. Usmanov, who sued over a range of accusations made by Navalny, said his deal transferring ownership of property was a legitimate business transaction.