Moscow rejects

Navalny’s death: international investigation called for

Vigil for the deceased opposition activist Alexei Navalny in the US city of Seattle(Bild: APA/AFP/Jason Redmond)

Following the death of prominent Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in a Russian prison camp, more than 40 countries have called for an independent international investigation.

According to Russian sources, the 47-year-old died a "natural death", although the exact circumstances remain unclear. His supporters and numerous Western politicians blame the Russian leadership and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin for the death of the opposition figure. Moscow rejects the accusations.

Funeral service for Navalny in Moscow(Bild: AP)

Moscow does not want to react to "gross interference"
"We consider the calls for 'transparent, independent investigations' to be nothing other than gross interference in the internal affairs of our country," said a representative of the Russian OSCE mission in Vienna. He described concerns from "states of the Western alliance" regarding Russian events or the fate of other criminals in Russia as "hypocritical".

After Navalny's death, the authorities had refused to hand over his body to his relatives for eight days. They suspected that this was an attempt to cover up the authorities' involvement in his death. Navalny was finally buried in Moscow on Friday, with numerous supporters flocking to the ceremony despite warnings from the authorities.

On Monday, Navalny's widow Yulia Navalnaya thanked Russians for their sympathy. Many wondered why Alexei had never given up, Navalnaya wrote on X: "For your sake, the wonderful, courageous and honest people who are now standing in an endless line to say goodbye to him." This is real love, she wrote. She also posted a video showing the long line of mourners with flowers in front of the cemetery where Navalny was buried (see above).