Montyan's defence to appeal prison sentence

A court in Donetsk sentenced blogger and lawyer Tatyana Montyan to a year and a half in prison over calls for extremist activity, her lawyer Alexey Kalugin said.

Kalugin said her existing restrictions on leaving her place of residence would remain unchanged until the verdict takes legal effect. Montyan remains at liberty for now.

She was charged under part 2 of article 280 of Russia's Criminal Code, covering public calls for extremist activity through the internet or mass media.

Montyan had asked for proceedings to be moved from Donetsk to Moscow because of her health, but the request was refused. The court excused her from attending, although she joined some hearings by video link from a Moscow court.

The defence sought an acquittal and challenged the legal classification of her actions. Kalugin said the sentence would be appealed.