A俄语随着克里姆林宫采取行动粉碎纳瓦尔尼的运动，法院宣布反对派领导人阿列克谢·纳瓦尔尼的组织为非法，称其为“极端分子”在他入狱后今年早些时候。

莫斯科市法院的裁决将纳瓦尔尼的反腐败基金会、FBK及其地区政治办公室与伊斯兰国等恐怖组织放在一起，这意味着任何公开支持纳瓦尔尼的人现在都可能面临长期监禁，并被禁止参加选举。

纳瓦尔尼，俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京最著名的批评家，于二月被判入狱两年半从神经毒剂中毒中幸存去年夏天独立调查，就像贝林卡特领导的那个，与克里姆林宫有联系。

宣布纳瓦尔尼运动为非法的举措是普京治下史无前例的大规模镇压的一部分，旨在压制最近几个月加剧的异议。人权组织和独立观察人士普遍认为，此举是为了在9月俄罗斯议会选举前清除反克里姆林宫的反对派。

法院接受了莫斯科检察官办公室的请求，根据名义上旨在针对暴力恐怖组织的立法，将反腐败基金会及其地区办事处(称为“纳瓦尔尼总部”)指定为“极端主义者”，但该基金会也曾被用于反对克里姆林宫。

纳瓦尔尼的反腐败基金会对普京和强大的俄罗斯人之间的涉嫌腐败进行了引人注目的调查，这些调查帮助他在俄罗斯建立了基层追随者。

它组织运动和和平抗议，呼吁自由选举，结束腐败和释放政治犯。

这项裁决意味着，任何为这些组织工作或资助他们的人现在都可能面临最高6年的监禁。但即使是那些公开表示支持纳瓦尔尼或组织与他相关的示威游行的人，也可能面临类似的判决。

“这是历史性的。俄罗斯。坠入深渊。这对我们所有人都有影响，”反腐败基金会主任伊万·日达诺夫说用俄语写的在推特上。

米哈伊尔·斯维特洛夫/盖蒂影像公司

人们参加未经授权的抗议集会，抗议反对派领导人阿列克谢·纳夫被监禁

裁决后，纳瓦尔尼的团队发布了他在狱中的消息，称这是赤裸裸的企图保护普京的权力，捍卫他和他的盟友致富的能力。

“当腐败是国家权力的基础时，反腐败的战士就是极端分子，”纳瓦尔尼在他的官方网站Instagram上用俄语写道。

纳瓦尔尼说，尽管执政，该运动将找到继续战斗的方法。

“我们不是一个名字或报纸或办公室。我们是一群团结起来的人，组织那些反对腐败的俄罗斯公民，支持诚实的法庭和法律面前的平等，”他写道。“他们有几百万。你就是他们。你在那里的时候，我们哪儿也不去。”

庭审部分是秘密进行的，因为一些针对反腐败基金的案件证据被列为机密。

检察官指控纳瓦尔尼的组织“在自由主义口号的掩护下”，试图创造“破坏社会和公民政治局势稳定的条件”。他们声称，这些团体试图改变俄罗斯的“宪法秩序”，包括通过一场所谓的外国支持的革命。

周一的听证会持续了12个小时，一直持续到深夜，因为纳瓦尔尼的团队暗示当局试图仓促通过裁决。

弗拉基米尔·格多\塔斯社

俄罗斯反对派活动家阿列克谢·纳瓦尔尼在莫斯科市法院的场外听证会上

美国周三也谴责了这一决定，称其“特别令人不安”

国务院发言人内德·普莱斯·萨德(Ned Price sad)在一份声明中表示:“这一任命使俄罗斯各地的工作人员、志愿者和数千名支持者面临因行使俄罗斯宪法保障的基本人权而受到刑事起诉和监禁的风险，并进一步限制了反对派候选人在9月份杜马选举中出现在选票上的能力。”“通过这一行动，俄罗斯有效地将该国仅存的几个独立政治运动之一定罪。”

宣布纳瓦尔尼运动为非法的决定对乔·拜登总统来说是一个巨大的挑战，比他和普京早一周预定举行他们的峰会。

过去一年，俄罗斯对异议人士的镇压比普京统治20年期间的任何时候都更加激烈，克里姆林宫似乎不再愿意容忍任何政治反对派。

随着议会选举的临近，普京的执政党统一俄罗斯党(United Russia)的投票情况很糟糕，纳瓦尔尼的团队计划将它们作为一个机会，通过战术投票造成损失，让该党难堪。

投票前，当局已采取措施禁止反克里姆林宫的反对派参与。本周，德米特里·古德科夫(Dmitry Gudkov)是少数没有受到刑事调查或流亡的著名反对派人物之一，在警方拘留和讯问他后，他逃离俄罗斯前往乌克兰，称他担心自己和家人可能面临逮捕。

Russia outlaws Putin critic Alexey Navalny's organizations as 'extremist'

ARussiancourt has outlawed the organizations of the opposition leader Alexey Navalny by labelling them "extremist" as the Kremlin moves to crush Navalny's movementfollowing his jailingearlier this year.

The ruling by Moscow's City Court puts Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, the FBK, and its regional political offices alongside terror groups like the Islamic State and means that anyone publicly supporting Navalny could now face lengthy prison sentences, as well as being barred from running in elections.

Navalny, Russian President Vladimir Putin's most prominent critic, was sentenced to two and half years in a prison camp in February aftersurviving a nerve agent poisoninglast summer that independent investigations,like the one led by Bellingcat, have linked to the Kremlin.

The move to outlaw Navalny's movement is part of a sweeping and unprecedented crackdown under Putin to stifle dissent that has intensified in recent months. It is widely seen by rights groups and independent observers as an effort to clear the field of anti-Kremlin opposition ahead of Russia's parliamentary elections in September.

The court accepted a request by Moscow's Prosecutor's Office to designate the Anti-Corruption Foundation and his regional offices, known as "Navalny Headquarters" as "extremist" under legislation nominally intended for violent terrorist groups, but which has also been used against opponents of the Kremlin.

Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation produces his spectacular investigations into alleged corruption among Putin and powerful Russians that have helped create his grassroots following in Russia.

It organizes campaigns and peaceful protests that call for free elections, an end to corruption and to free political prisoners.

The ruling means that anyone working for the organizations or financing them could now face up to six years in prison. But even those expressing support for Navalny publicly or organizing demonstrations associated with him could also risk similar sentences.

"It's historic. Russia. A descent into the abyss. This impacts us all," Anti-Corruption Foundation Director Ivan Zhdanovwrote in Russianon Twitter.

After the ruling, Navalny's team posted a message from him in prison calling it a naked attempt to protect Putin's power and defend he and his allies' ability to enrich themselves.

"When corruption is the basis of state power, fighters against corruption are extremists," Navalny wrote in Russian in the statement posted on his official Instagram.

Navalny said despite the ruling the movement would find ways to continue its fight.

"We are not a name or paper or an office. We are a group of people who are united and organize those citizens of Russia who are against corruption, are for honest courts and equality before the law," he wrote. "There are millions of them. You are them. And while you are there, we aren't going anywhere."

The court hearings were held partly behind closed doors because some of the case evidence against the Anti-Corruption Fund was classified as secret.

Prosecutors accused Navalny's organizations of "under the cover of liberal slogans" trying to create the "conditions for destabilizing the social and civil-political situation." They alleged the groups are attempting to change Russia's "constitutional order," including through a supposed foreign-backed revolution.

The hearing Monday lasted 12 hours, and late into the night, as Navalny's team suggested the authorities were trying to rush through the ruling.

The United States also condemned the decision on Wednesday, calling it "particularly disturbing."

"This designation puts staff members, volunteers, and thousands of supporters across Russia at risk of criminal prosecution and imprisonment for exercising fundamental human rights guaranteed by the Russian Constitution, and it further restricts the ability of opposition candidates to appear on the ballot in the September Duma elections," State Department spokesperson Ned Price sad in a statement. "With this action, Russia has effectively criminalized one of the country’s few remaining independent political movements."

This decision to outlaw Navalny's movement is a strong challenge to President Joe Biden, one week before he and Putin arescheduled to hold their summit.

The crackdown on dissent in Russia in the past year has become more intense than at any other time during Putin's two-decade rule, with the Kremlin no longer seeming willing to tolerate any political opposition.

Putin's ruling party, United Russia, is polling badly as the parliamentary elections approach and Navalny's team has planned to target them as an opportunity to embarrass the party by inflicting losses through tactical voting.

Ahead of the vote, authorities have taken steps to bar anti-Kremlin opposition from taking part. This week, Dmitry Gudkov, one of the few prominent opposition figures not under criminal investigation or in exile, fled Russia to Ukraine after police detained and questioned him, saying he feared he and his family could face arrest.

ABC News' Conor Finnegan contributed to this report.