Navalny appears at a court hearing the day before his death/Reuters
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died mysteriously in prison two weeks ago, was buried today (Friday) in Moscow under heavy security by the authorities.
Close associates of President Vladimir Putin's most prominent opponent fear that the police will arrest the participants in the event, for which they have set up barriers and deployed large forces.
Close to the time of the funeral, the body was handed over to the family's relatives, who for the past two weeks have been suffering at the hands of the authorities.
The Kremlin denies that it is involved in anything related to the funeral arrangements for Navalny, who died suddenly at the age of 47 in a penal colony in the Arctic Circle where he served decades of imprisonment.
According to his official death certificate, he died of "natural causes".
However, Navalny's supporters claim that Putin ordered his murder to prevent his possible release in a prisoner deal and promised to present evidence of this.
Navalny's coffin in a Moscow cemetery, today/Reuters
Navalny's funeral is to be held in a church in the Maryno neighborhood of Moscow, where Navalny used to live.
About two hours later, he is to be laid to rest at the Borisovkasi cemetery, which lies about 2.5 km across the Moscow River.
Navalny's supporters, who are exiled outside Russia, which defines them as "extremists" supported by the West, called on those who want to pay their last respects and cannot attend his funeral and arrive at designated sites in their cities of residence at 7:00 p.m.
The Russian authorities, who since the start of the war in Ukraine two years ago have been even less tolerant of any manifestation of protest, warned that this was a provocation that would be dealt with by the police accordingly. After Navalny's death, more than 400 people throughout Russia were arrested after laying flowers or lighting candles in his memory.
More on the same topic:
Russia
Alexei Navalny