A court in Russia on Thursday convicted a pro-war activist and critic of President Vladimir Putin of justifying terrorism and sentenced him to six years in prison.
Sergei Udaltsov, the leader of the Left Front movement that opposes Putin and is affiliated with the Communist Party, was arrested last year.
According to Russian independent news site Mediazona, the charges against him stem from an article Udaltsov posted online in support of another group of Russian activists accused of forming a terrorist organization. Those activists were convicted earlier this month and handed sentences ranging from 16 to 22 years in prison.
Udaltsov has rejected the charges against him as fabricated. On Thursday, he denounced the verdict as “shameful” and said he was going on a hunger strike, Mediazona reported.
According to the court ruling, the activist will be serving his sentence in a maximum security penal colony.
Udaltsov was a prominent opposition figure during the 2011-12 mass protests in Russia, triggered by reports of widespread rigging of a parliamentary election. In February 2012, he took part in a meeting that then-President Dmitry Medvedev held with various opposition figures.
Russian authorities have ramped up their crackdown on dissent and free speech after the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine, relentlessly targeting rights groups, independent media, members of civil society organizations, LGBTQ+ activists and some religious groups. Hundreds of people have been jailed and thousands of others have fled the country.
In December 2023, a Moscow court sentenced Udaltsov to 40 hours of compulsory labor for violating procedures relating to organizing a rally after he was detained on Red Square, where he tried to unfurl a flag with the image of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, according to Russia's state news agency Tass.
Udaltsov was previously imprisoned in 2014 and sentenced to 4½ years on charges related to his role in organizing a 2012 demonstration against Putin that turned turbulent. He was released in 2017.
FILE - Sergei Udaltsov, a political activist, stands behind glass in a cage in a courtroom prior to a session in Moscow, Russia, Monday, April 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, File)
WRIGHTWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Southern California braced Thursday for another powerful storm system that could cause more flooding and mudslides a day after heavy rain and gusty winds were blamed for at least two deaths.
Forecasters said the region could see its wettest Christmas in years, increasing the risk of debris flows in areas scorched by wildfires in January. Those burn scar zones have been stripped of vegetation by fire and are less able to absorb water.
On Wednesday, a falling tree killed a San Diego man, local news outlets reported. Farther north, a Sacramento sheriff’s deputy died in what appeared to be a weather-related crash.
San Bernardino County firefighters said they rescued people trapped in cars when mud and debris rushed down a road leading into Wrightwood, a resort town in the San Gabriel Mountains about 80 miles (130 kilometers) northeast of Los Angeles. It was not immediately clear how many people were rescued.
Roads in the town of about 5,000 people were covered in rocks, debris and thick mud on Thursday. With power out, a local gas station and coffee shop running on generators were serving as hubs for residents and visitors. Statewide, more than 120,000 people were without power, according to PowerOutage.us.
“It’s really a crazy Christmas,” said Jill Jenkins, who was spending the holiday with her 13-year-old grandson, Hunter Lopiccolo.
Lopiccolo said the family almost evacuated the previous day, when water washed away a chunk of their backyard. But they eventually decided to stay and still celebrated the holiday. Lopiccolo got a new snowboard and e-bike.
“We just played card games all night with candles and flashlights,” he said.
Resident Arlene Corte said roads in town turned into rivers, but her house was not damaged.
“It could be a whole lot worse,” she said. “We’re here talking.”
Residents around burn scar zones from the Airport Fire in Orange County were under evacuation orders.
Areas along the coast, including Malibu, were under a flood watch until Friday afternoon, and wind and flood advisories were issued for much of the Sacramento Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area.
The storms were the result of multiple atmospheric rivers carrying massive plumes of moisture from the tropics during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year.
Southern California typically gets half an inch to 1 inch (1.3 to 2.5 centimeters) of rain this time of year, but this week many areas could see between 4 and 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters) with even more in the mountains, National Weather Service meteorologist Mike Wofford said.
More heavy snow was expected in the Sierra Nevada, where wind gusts created “near white-out conditions” in places and made mountain pass travel treacherous. Officials said there was a “considerable” avalanche risk around Lake Tahoe, and a winter storm warning was in effect through Friday.
Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in six counties to allow state assistance in storm response.
The state deployed emergency resources and first responders to several coastal and Southern California counties, and the California National Guard was on standby.
The California Highway Patrol reported a seemingly weather-related crash south of Sacramento in which a Sacramento sheriff's deputy died. James Caravallo, who was with the agency for 19 years, was apparently traveling at an unsafe speed, lost control on a wet road and crashed into a power pole, CHP Officer Michael Harper said via email.
Associated Press writers Sophie Austin in Sacramento, Jessica Hill in Las Vegas and Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City contributed.
Miguel Lopez sweeps water from Marlene's Beachcomber on the Santa Monica pier Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
A tourist from China battles the rain on the Santa Monica pier Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
Part of California State Route 138 washes away from flooding Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, outside of Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
A resident sweeps water and mud in her house after flooding Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
A car sits buried in mud after flooding Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, in Wrightwood, Calif. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
