Khimki forest defenders Sergey Udaltsov and Yaroslv Nikitenko will meet the New Year in one of the infamous Moscow prisons, sentenced to 10 days of arrest. Udaltsov was found guilty of resisting police during a one-man picket near the office of the Central Elections Commission in October. The 26 years old judge Olga Borovkova dismissed the defense's claim that such pickets require no permission from authorities, as well as video footage that showed Udaltsov offering no resistance during arrest.
Several hundreds of protesters rallied outside the court building on Sunday 26th. Inside, dozens of reporters and Udaltsov's supporters protested the judge's decision to expel them from the court room, unsuccessfully trying to force their way in past security guards. The police only detained one protester, Yaroslav Nikitenko, who was then also slapped with 10 days in jail for participating in an unsanctioned rally. Russian human rights activists are outraged over the recent arrests and judgments.  The Russian Human Rights council as well as the the human rights commissioner Vladimir Lukin  announced the will to examine the judgments accurately.