UN rights chief calls for release of Kremlin critic Kara-Murza

The United Nations human rights chief called on Moscow to free long-time Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza who was sentenced earlier on Monday to a 25-year prison sentence on charges including treason.

"No one should be deprived of their liberty for exercising their human rights, and I call on the Russian authorities to release him without delay," said Volker Turk, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights in a statement.

He added that the sentence was "another blow to the rule of law and civic space in the Russian Federation".