Body of Kremlin-critic Alexis Navalny has been handed over to his mom, aide says | EUROtoday

Issued on: 24/02/2024 – 17:36

1 min

Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s most vocal critic, died on February 16 in considered one of Russia’s hardest prisons in northern Siberia, the place he was serving a 19-year sentence on fees broadly seen as political retribution for his opposition.

“Alexei’s body was handed over to his mother. Many thanks to all those who demanded this with us,” Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh stated on X, previously often known as Twitter.

For the previous week, Russian authorities had refused to present Lyudmila Navalnaya custody of her son’s physique, after she travelled to the city of Salekhard within the Yamalo-Nenets area, the closest settlement to the jail colony the place Navalny died.

Navalny’s staff on Friday stated that they had filed a lawsuit to acquire the physique, alleging that native investigators had threatened to bury him on the jail grounds if his mom didn’t comply with a “secret” funeral.

Yarmysh stated plans for the funeral have been nonetheless unclear.

“Lyudmila Ivanovna is still in Salekhard. The funeral is still pending. We do not know if the authorities will interfere to carry it out as the family wants and as Alexei deserves,” she stated.

His staff stated beforehand the Kremlin was attempting to dam a public funeral, which may flip right into a present of help for Navalny’s motion and his opposition to Putin.

The Russian chief, who famously by no means stated Navalny’s title in public, has not commented on the loss of life of his most vocal critic.

(AFP)