Alexei Navalny’s team confirms his death, whereabouts of body remain unclear

Supporters of Alexei Navalny on Saturday accused the Russian authorities of refusing to hand over his body to his family.

According to news agency AFP, Navalny’s supporters accused Russian authorities of being “killers” who were “covering their tracks” by refusing to hand over his body.

The 47-year-old Kremlin critic died in an Arctic prison on Friday after being struck by “sudden death syndrome”, his mother, Lyudmila, was told on Saturday by Russian authorities, adding that his body would not be handed over to the family until an investigation was completed.

In a post on X, Navalny’s spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh said that Navalny’s mother, along with a lawyer, also visited the Salekhard morgue in Russia, but could not get his body.

“Alexey’s lawyer and his mother have arrived at the Salekhard morgue. It’s closed, however, the colony has assured them it’s working and Navalny’s body is there. The lawyer called the phone number which was on the door. He was told he was the seventh caller today. Alexey’s body is not in the morgue,” she said in a post on X.

The death of Navalny has attracted sharp criticism from Western leaders, led by US President Joe Biden, who paid tribute to Navalny’s courage and, without citing evidence, accused President Vladimir Putin of being responsible for the death. Britain said there would be consequences for Russia.

Meanwhile, nearly 340 people have been arrested by the Russian authorities following vigils and gatherings across Russia after Navalny’s death, according to independent Russian human rights monitoring group OVD-Info.

Speaking on the death of Navalny, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, described Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “thug” and said it was “absurd” to perceive him as the “legitimate head of a Russian state”.