Navalny's final trip is accompanied by threats and intimidation. At today's funeral in Moscow, the Russian executive may take violent measures against his supporters.
Two weeks after his death in a prison camp, known Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny will be buried on Friday in the Russian capital, Moscow. After Navalny's family members had to search for his body for days and were apparently harassed and blackmailed by representatives of the regime, there are fears that the Russian power apparatus could also take harsh measures against Navalny's supporters on this occasion.
The funeral at the church in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Ease my pain”, in the southeastern district of Marjino, is scheduled for 2pm local time (12pm CET), Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysch confirmed this Thursday . The burial will take place two hours later at Borisov Cemetery, in the southeast of the Russian capital, about half an hour's walk away.
Patrols and controls around the cemetery
Police patrols were seen around the cemetery on Thursday. According to independent media, police officers also checked the identities and bags of passersby. Additionally, numerous barriers were placed on the cemetery grounds. In recent weeks, hundreds of people have been arrested across Russia who wanted to lay flowers at monuments to the well-known opposition politician. According to Navalny's mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, the Kremlin wanted Navalny to be buried secretly. Jarmysch also complained on platform X (formerly Twitter) that authorities continued to hamper funeral preparations. It has not yet been possible to organize a hearse. Moscow funeral homes received threatening calls from unknown people warning them not to transport the body, Yarmysh wrote.
According to official information, Navalny died on February 16, aged just 47, in a prison camp north of the Arctic Circle. The outspoken critic of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin was left physically greatly weakened by a poison attack in 2020 and constant solitary confinement in the camp. His supporters and many international observers therefore agree that there cannot be a “natural” cause of death, as stated on the death certificate. (APA)