THE leading figure of the Russian opposition, Alexei Navalny, staunch critic of Vladimir Putin breathed his last under circumstances shrouded in mystery, inside a prison in the Arctic Circle.

In a statement, the federal penitentiary service states that the only 47-year-old Navalny felt unwell after a walk and lost consciousness.

“On February 16, 2024, in the prison center N ° 3, the prisoner Navalny A. A. felt unwell after a walk (…) the causes of his death are under investigation,” the statement of the Russian prison services states.

“All necessary resuscitation methods were applied, but they did not work. Emergency doctors pronounced the patient dead…”

It is recalled that in 2020, the activist lawyer had fallen victim to poisoning with the nerve agent Novichok with his associates blaming Moscow, which the Russian government has strongly denied.

On August 20, 2020, Navalny was rushed to hospital in a stable but critical condition after suspected poisoning during a flight from Tomsk to Moscow. Germany sent a delegation of doctors to Russia, and Navalny was eventually flown to Berlin and treated at his hospital, where he was out of danger after weeks of extended hospitalization.

After being hospitalized in Germany, he immediately returned to Russia, but was immediately arrested by the authorities. This led to widespread protests and violent incidents between Russian police and Navalny supporters.

Vladimir Putin was informed of his death without an official reaction from the Kremlin so far.

In a post on Platform X, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs said that Navalny’s death is a reminder of the reality of Vladimir Putin’s regime, while the President of the European Parliament, Charles Michel, said that Navalny fought for the values ​​of democracy, sending his condolences to the family of the activist lawyer. And the head of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, took the position stating that Russia must answer questions.

Arctic prison action

Alexei Navalny, 47, was serving a 19-year sentence for “extremist activity” in an Arctic prison under harsh conditions. his chain trials and conditions of detention were seen as ways of punishing him for his opposition to Vladimir Putin and his circle.

During his trials in recent months, which he attended via video conference, Alexei Navalny appeared emaciated and aged. He suffered from health problems linked to his prison hunger strike and attempted assassination by poisoning in 2020.

Imprisonment had not dampened his determination. During the hearings and in the messages posted on social media by the advocates, Navalny did not stop to denounce Vladimir Putin, the “grandfather hidden in the bunker”.

In his trial for “extremist action” he denounced the Russian invasion of Ukraine as “the most stupid and senseless war of the 21st century.

In his messages on the Internet he refers ironically to the intimidation reserved for him by the prison authorities.

In a February 1 message released by his team on social media, Alexei Navalny called for demonstrations across Russia ahead of the March 15-17 presidential election, which Putin is certain to win after all opposition figures have been assassinated, jailed or forced into exile, while the suppression of any dissenting voice continues.