Efforts to secure a hearse for transporting Alexey Navalny’s body to his funeral have reportedly faced obstruction from unidentified individuals, as stated by the Russian opposition leader’s team on Thursday. Spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh asserted that drivers had received threats from unknown sources, compelling them not to transport Alexey’s body. Yarmysh further mentioned that, according to information received, no hearse was willing to undertake the task.
Navalny’s team faced challenges in securing a venue for his funeral, scheduled at 2 p.m. local time (6 a.m. ET) on Friday. The service will take place at the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God in Moscow’s Maryino district, where the opposition leader resided. Following the funeral, Navalny will be interred at Borisov Cemetery.
Numerous venues either cited prior commitments or declined bookings upon learning of Navalny’s association, according to Yarmysh. She mentioned that one venue explicitly stated they were prohibited from collaborating with Navalny’s team. Originally, the team had intended to organize a public farewell and funeral for the deceased Russian opposition leader on Thursday. However, they were informed that “no available cemetery workers who can dig a grave” were accessible, as conveyed by Ivan Zhdanov, the director of Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, on Wednesday.
Navalny’s widow, Navalnaya, holds Putin responsible for her husband’s demise.
Alexey Navalny passed away on February 16 while serving a 19-year sentence in a Siberian penal colony. His charges included the creation of an extremist community, financing extremist activists, and various other crimes. Navalny was already serving 11-and-a-half years in a maximum-security facility for charges he vehemently denied, asserting they were politically motivated.
According to the Russian prison service, Navalny felt unwell after a walk in the Siberian penal colony, losing consciousness almost immediately. Navalny, a prominent opposition leader, had been a vocal critic of Putin throughout his lengthy tenure, facing significant personal risk. His death occurred just weeks before the scheduled nationwide presidential elections on March 15, widely perceived internationally as a mere formality securing Putin’s fifth term in power.
The passing of Navalny elicited sorrow and outrage globally, echoing sentiments shared within Russia, where even minor acts of political dissent carry substantial risks.
After undergoing treatment in Germany for poisoning with Novichok, a Soviet-era nerve agent, Navalny returned to Russia in 2021. Upon arrival, he was promptly arrested on charges he deemed politically motivated, leading to the remainder of his life spent behind bars.
Yulia Navalnaya, his wife, has squarely pointed the blame at Russian President Vladimir Putin for her husband’s demise.
“Putin killed my husband,” she declared in a speech delivered at the European Parliament on Wednesday. She went on to assert, “On his orders, Alexey endured three years of torture,” alluding to Navalny’s lengthy imprisonment.
