Imprisoned Russian Opposition Leader And Putin Critic Alexei Navalny Dead At 47

Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny gestures while speaking to a crowd during a political protest in Moscow, Russia on July 20, 2019. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)

Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader and a staunch critic of President Vladimir Putin, died in prison on Friday, it’s been confirmed by the country’s prison service.

Navalny, 47, who had been a persistent thorn in the side of the Kremlin, died in a jail located roughly 40 miles north of the Arctic Circle.

The Federal Penitentiary Service for Yamal said in a statement: “On 16 February, 2024, in penal colony No 3, convict AA Navalny felt unwell after a walk, almost immediately losing consciousness. The facility’s medical workers immediately arrived at the scene and an emergency medical team was called in. All necessary resuscitation measures have been carried out, but they did not yield positive results. Emergency medics confirmed the death of the convict. The causes of death have been established.”

The opposition leader’s political journey was marked by a fight against corruption and election fraud within Russia’s ruling elite. His investigative work, which exposed the lifestyles and corruption of Putin’s inner circle, including a palace built for Putin’s personal use and extravagant assets owned by former president Dmitry Medvedev, made him a national hero to some and a target for the Kremlin.

His efforts culminated in 2013 when he secured 27 percent of the vote in the Moscow mayoral race.

Navalny fell into a coma in 2020 after a suspected poisoning by the novichok nerve agent. Despite recovering in Germany, Navalny’s return to Russia in January 2021 led to his immediate arrest and subsequent sentencing to more than 30 years in prison on charges he denounced as politically motivated.