Alexei Navalny’s funeral in Moscow on Friday, his widow fears possible arrest
Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny’s funeral The vigil will be held in Moscow on Friday, his wife Yulia announced, but she said she was unsure whether it would be held peacefully and plans for a civil memorial service had been blocked.
Navalny’s spokesman Kira Yarmysh posted on Twitter that a service for Navalny would be held on Friday afternoon at the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God in the Moscow district of Maryino, where Navalny lived.
Navalny will then be buried at the Borisovskoye cemetery, about 2.5 km (1.5 mi) away on the other side of the Moskva River. A Reuters reporter on Wednesday saw three police patrolling the snow-covered cemetery, which is located near a busy road.
Navalny’s allies accused the Kremlin of thwarting their attempts to hold a separate civil memorial service in a hall that could accommodate more people, and blocking plans to bury Navalny a day earlier. The Kremlin has said that it has nothing to do with such arrangements.
“Two people – Vladimir Putin and (Moscow Mayor) Sergei Sobyanin – are to blame for the fact that we have no place for a civil memorial service and farewell to Alexei,” his wife Yulia wrote on
“The people in the Kremlin killed him, then mocked Alexei’s body, then mocked his mother, now they are mocking his memory.”
The Kremlin has denied any involvement Navalny died on 16 February He died in an Arctic penal colony at the age of 47 and his death certificate – according to his supporters – states that he died of natural causes.
Russian Orthodox funeral services are typically presided over by a priest and accompanied by congregational singing, with attendees gathering around the open coffin of the deceased to bid their farewells. The chosen church is an imposing five-domed white building in a suburb of south-eastern Moscow.
It was not immediately clear how authorities would ensure crowd control.
But given past gatherings of Navalny supporters – whom Russian officials have designated as US-backed extremists – there is likely to be a heavy police presence and authorities will crack down on anything they deem a political demonstration under protest laws.
“The funeral will take place the day after tomorrow and I’m not sure yet whether it will be peaceful or whether the police will arrest those who have come to say goodbye to my husband,” Yulia said in a speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg. ,
Navalny’s allies have accused President Vladimir Putin of orchestrating his assassination because the Russian leader reportedly couldn’t bear to think about it Navalny is being freed in a possible prisoner swap.
He has not published evidence to support that allegation, but has promised to explain how and who murdered him.
The Kremlin has denied state involvement in his death and said it was unaware of any agreement to free Navalny.
allegations
“Putin killed my husband,” Yulia Navalnaya told European lawmakers in Strasbourg.
He said, “On his orders, Alexei was tortured for three years. He was starved in a small stone cell, cut off from the outside world and denied visits, phone calls and even letters.” It has been done.”
In the 12 days since her husband’s death, Navalny has claimed to assume leadership of Russia’s fragmented opposition, saying she will continue his work.
Speaking in English, his voice sometimes stuttering, he described Putin as a “bloody monster” and told lawmakers it was not possible to negotiate with him.
He called for more effective action against the money flows of Russia’s ruling elite, saying, “You can’t hurt Putin with another proposal or another set of sanctions that is no different from the previous ones.”
burial site
Navalny’s allies were also looking for a hall to accommodate his supporters at a non-religious farewell ceremony, but said they were refused everywhere.
“Initially we planned the farewell and funeral for February 29. It quickly became clear that by February 29 there was not a single person who could dig a grave,” Navalny’s aide Ivan Zhdanov wrote on X.
February 29, Thursday, is the day Putin is scheduled to deliver a speech to Russia’s political elite, and Zhdanov accused officials of not wanting Navalny’s funeral to take place on the same day and ignoring it.
Zhdanov also accused authorities of blocking efforts to secure a large hall for supporters to bid farewell to Navalny.
His wife Yulia said that she and others just wanted people to have a chance to say goodbye to him “in a normal way”.
“Please stay out of the way,” she urged officers.