As of: February 29, 2024, 3:10 p.m
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A view of the church where the funeral service of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is to take place.
© Uncredited/AP/dpa
Two weeks after his death in custody, Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny will be buried in Moscow tomorrow.
The opposition team is calling on people to say goodbye to him.
Moscow - The team of Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny, who died in custody, has called on people to come to the memorial service and funeral of the opposition figure in Moscow tomorrow, despite the expected police presence.
The funeral service in the church is planned for 2 p.m. local time (12 p.m. CET), and the funeral at the Borisovskoye cemetery is scheduled for two hours later, said Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysch.
Everyone to whom Navalny's political work meant something should come.
The walk from the church in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Relieve my sorrow” to the cemetery is therefore 28 minutes.
Criticism of Russian authorities
Navalny's team wants to report live on the Internet about the memorial service in the southeastern Marjino district as well as about the funeral and recommended that guests arrive early.
A large security presence is expected - and there are fears that uniformed officers could block access to Navalny's supporters.
The widow Yulia Navalnaya also spread the call to come to the funeral service.
Navalny's mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, received her son's body on Saturday after days of demanding that the authorities hand him over to her.
She refused a secret burial initially requested by the authorities.
In recent days, Navalny's team had been looking for a location for the memorial service and complained that they were being hindered by the Russian authorities.
According to Russian Orthodox custom, it is actually customary to bury the dead after three days and to lay out their bodies in an open coffin beforehand so that mourners can say goodbye.
However, a hall for such a farewell ritual was not made available, wrote Ivan Zhdanov, the director of the anti-corruption fund founded by Navalny.
Many arrests
According to official information, Navalny died on February 16 at the age of 47 in a prison camp north of the Arctic Circle.
The sharp critic of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin was physically very weakened by a poison attack in 2020 and constant solitary confinement in the camp.
His supporters and many international observers therefore agree that there can be no question of a “natural” cause of death, as is stated on the death certificate.
Yulia Navalnaya, his team and civil rights activists had accused Putin of murdering the politician.
Anyone who publicly mourns Navalny in Russia runs the risk of being arrested.
Hundreds of people were recently arrested while laying flowers for Navalny.
dpa