A Russian court has released opposition leader Alexei Navalny from custody less than 24 hours after convicting him of embezzlement and sentencing him to five years in prison.

One of president Vladimir Putin’s fiercest critics has been charged with theft and is facing a 10-year prison sentence as the Kremlin steps up a crackdown on dissent.

THIS week, Cork City Ballet stages classic love tragedy, Giselle. Directed by Alan Foley, the production will be reproduced for the company by Yuri Demakov of the Bolshoi.