The funeral ceremonies for Russian opponent Alexei Navalny, who died in prison on February 16, are scheduled for today in Moscow, with strong police surveillance expected after several incidents related to the handover of the body to the family.
The ceremonies are scheduled for 12:00 local time (09:00 in Lisbon) at the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God, in the southeast of the Russian capital and in the neighborhood where Navalny lived when he was free, from where a procession will leave for the cemetery from Borisovsskia, about 20 kilometers from the Kremlin.
On Thursday, the Russian opponent’s collaborators said that the funeral home was refusing to transport the body to the wake, following threats from unknown people.
Since the delivery of Alexei Navalny’s body to his mother last Saturday and more than a week after his death, all requests for a public farewell have been refused and the actions in his honor have merited repression by the authorities, leading to the arrest of around of 400 people, according to the specialized NGO OVD-Info.
According to prison services, Navalny succumbed to a sudden illness “after a walk” in an Arctic prison where he was serving a sentence, but the circumstances of his death remain unclear.
Several Western leaders blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is running for presidential elections in the middle of this month.
Navalny’s collaborators are calling on Muscovites to attend the funeral, where a large police surveillance system is expected, and on his supporters to gather in other cities and abroad in honor of his memory and activism.
In Lisbon, the Free Russians Association has scheduled a rally from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm in front of the Russian Embassy.
Tags: Opponents funeral scheduled today incidents involving body delivery
