Alexei Navalny, the most dangerous opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, collapsed and died yesterday after a walk in the Arctic penal colony "Polar Wolf" where he was serving a thirty-year prison sentence, the Russian prison service announced.
The death of Navalny, a 47-year-old former lawyer, leaves Russia's motley opposition without its boldest leader as Putin prepares for an election that will extend his rule until at least 2030.
There is no longer any opposition leader of that rank in Russia. For some young urban Russians, Navalny also offered hope for a Russia different from Putin's.
The Federal Penitentiary Service of the Yamal-Skonenet Autonomous District said Navalny felt unwell after a walk in the IK-3 penal colony in Harp, about 1.900 km northeast of Moscow. He lost consciousness almost immediately and died a short time later despite the efforts of the prison's medical team and emergency personnel, the prison service said. Attempts to resuscitate him failed, the statement said.
We don't know exactly what happened, but there is no doubt that Navalny's death was the result of something done by Putin and his bandits, Biden said.
Navalny's wife, Yuliya, said at the Munich Security Conference that she could not be sure her husband was dead because "Putin and his government... are constantly lying."
"But if this is true, I want Putin, his entire entourage, Putin's friends, his government to know that they will bear responsibility for what they did to our country, to my family, to my husband," she said.
"This regime and Vladimir Putin must bear personal responsibility for all the terrible things they have done to my country, our country, Russia in recent years.
The Kremlin said Putin had been informed. The 71-year-old former KGB spy was shown meeting with factory workers in Chelyabinsk in the Urals.
Western leaders paid tribute to Navalny's courage as a freedom fighter. Some, without citing evidence, accused the Kremlin of murder and said that Putin should be held accountable for his death.
United States President Joe Biden said he was "not surprised" but "outraged" after reports of Navalny's death.
"We don't know exactly what happened, but there is no doubt that Navalny's death was the result of something done by Putin and his bandits," Biden said at the White House.
"The Russian authorities will tell their story. But there is no doubt that Putin is responsible for Navalny's death," Biden said.
He added that he was "considering" additional steps to punish Russia after Navalny's death, paying tribute to the opposition leader for "bravely" standing up to the "corruption" and "violence" of Putin's government.
Biden warned Putin after a meeting with the Russian leader in Geneva in June 2021 that Russia would risk "devastating" consequences if Navalny died in prison.
The White House has requested more information about Navalny's death in the colony north of the Arctic Circle, where he was sent less than two months ago.
“His death in a Russian prison and the fixation and fear of one man only underscores the weakness and rot at the heart of the system that Putin has built. Russia is responsible for this," US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said shortly before meeting with Navalny's wife in Munich.
US Vice President Kamala Harris said that the death of the opposition politician, if confirmed, would be another sign of Putin's brutality.
News of Navalny's death rocked the annual Munich conference, where leaders gathered to bolster unity amid Russia's two-year invasion of Ukraine.
Alexei Navalny's team said it had no confirmation of his death, but described the prison service's statement as an admission of murder.
"We have no reason to believe in state propaganda. If this is true, then Navalny did not 'die' but 'Putin killed Navalny,'” said Leonid Volkov, a close associate of Navalny.
Navalj's spokeswoman Kira Jarmiš said that his movement and goals will continue to live on.
"We are convinced that we will win in the end. Russia is our country, it belongs to us and we must return it to us," said Jarmiš.
Navalny's lawyer is expected to arrive early this morning at the penal colony where Navalny was supposed to be in prison until the age of 70.
Dmitry Muratov, a Russian journalist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said that Navalny was murdered and that prison conditions led to his death.
We are convinced that we will win in the end. Russia is our country, it belongs to us and we must return it to us," Navalny's associate said
Supporters saw Navalny as a future leader of Russia who would eventually be freed to become president, although many opposition leaders feared he was in grave danger in Russia's prison system.
Grigoriy Yavlinski, a veteran liberal, described Navalny's death as a tragedy that shows the need for reform and added that he fears for the health of other opposition activists in prison.
In Moscow, at the monument to the victims of Soviet political repression in the shadow of the former headquarters of the KGB, some people laid flowers, under the watchful eye of the police, Reuters reported.
The Russian prosecutor's office has warned Russians not to participate in mass protests in central Moscow following Navalny's death.
Supporters planned gatherings in Navalny's honor in London, Paris, Oslo, Rome, Brussels, Berlin, Geneva, Prague, Yerevan and Vilnius, Reuters reported.
On the day before his death, the impetuous peered through the barred window, laughing and making jokes about how he had run out of money and about the judge's salary.
"Your honor, I will send you my personal account number so that you can use your huge salary as a federal judge to 'heat up' my personal account, because I am running out of money," he said via video link.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is shocked by the news of Navalny's death and calls for a "full, credible and transparent investigation" into the circumstances, UN spokesman Stefan Dižarik said.
"If someone dies under the supervision of the state, it is assumed that the state is responsible. This responsibility can only be rebutted through an impartial, thorough and transparent investigation conducted by an independent body," said the spokeswoman for the UN Office for Human Rights, Liz Trossell.
The Russian Investigative Commission announced that it had launched a procedural investigation into his death.
"We call on the Russian authorities to stop the persecution of politicians, human rights defenders and journalists, among others," Trosel said.
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed "anger and indignation" over Navalny's death.
"In today's Russia, free-spirited people are sent to gulags and sentenced to death," Macron said.
“I met with Navalny here in Berlin when he was trying to recover in Germany from the effects of the poisoning and also talked to him about the great courage it takes to return to his country. And now he probably paid for that courage with his life," said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“This is terrible news. As the fiercest supporter of Russian democracy, Alexei Navalny demonstrated incredible courage throughout his life," said British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kalas said that Russia and "all those responsible" must bear the consequences for the death of a Russian opposition member.
"The death of Navalny is another dark reminder of the renegade regime we are dealing with," Kalas wrote on Platform X.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni said Navalny's death was "disturbing" and served as a warning to the rest of the world.
The Kremlin announced that statements by Western leaders about Navalny's death were unacceptable and "absolutely insane."
EU: The regime killed him slowly
The European Union will do everything it can to hold Russia accountable for Navalny's death, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Vice President Josep Borrell said.
"He was being slowly killed by President Putin and his regime, who fear nothing more than the opposition of their own people," Von der Leyen and Borrell said.
They asked Russia to establish all the facts surrounding Navalny's death and "immediately release all other political prisoners."
"A grim reminder of what Putin and his regime represent. Let's unite in our fight to protect the freedom and safety of those who dare to oppose the autocracy", said Von der Leyen.
"Alexei Navalny fought for the values of freedom and democracy. He made the greatest sacrifice for his ideals. Fighters die, but the fight for freedom never ends," said the President of the European Council, Charles Michel.
Bonus video:
