A Russian court is expected to take almost two weeks to hear a lawsuit brought by the mother of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny over authorities’ refusal to release her son’s body.
Lyudmila Navalnaya has been trying to recover her son’s body since Saturday after he died in a penal colony in Russia’s far north the day before.
A closed hearing is scheduled for March 4, Russian state media reported on Wednesday, citing court officials.
Canada on Wednesday joined calls for the immediate release of Navalny’s body, calling on the Kremlin to summon its ambassador and conduct a full and transparent investigation.
A senior government official conveyed Canada’s condemnation of Navalny’s death to Russian Ambassador Oleg Stepanov, the spokesperson said in a statement, adding that Canada would also cooperate in holding accountable those responsible for Navalny’s death.
Lyudmila Navalnaya appealed on Tuesday to Russian President Vladimir Putin to release her son’s body for a “humane burial”.
“I haven’t seen my son for five days now. They won’t hand over his body to me or even tell me where he is,” she said outside the prison where her son died. In black.
“I appeal to you, Vladimir Putin. It is up to you to solve this problem. Let me finally meet my son. Please release Alexei’s body immediately so that he can be buried humanely. I request it.”
More than five days after his death, Navalny’s mother and lawyer have not been able to retrieve his body from investigators, who may not return it for two weeks as they conduct “examinations.” He said there is.
Supporters believe he was killed in foul play or as a result of three years of abuse in Russian prisons.
Navalny’s wife, Yulia Navalnaya, publicly accused President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday of ordering her husband’s murder, saying investigators were keeping Navalny’s body to cover up a political assassination. Ta.
Russian prison authorities reported on Friday that Mr. Navalny felt unwell after a walk in a prison in the town of Harb and soon lost consciousness. An ambulance arrived but they were unable to revive him, police said, adding that the cause of death was still “under investigation”.
Navalny’s death sparked widespread condemnation in Western countries, with many leaders pledging to introduce new sanctions on the Kremlin.
Britain on Wednesday imposed sanctions on six people responsible for the Arctic penal colony where Mr. Navalny died last week, a largely symbolic measure unlikely to have any broader implications for Russia.
The Biden administration also announced it was preparing “significant sanctions” against Russia in the wake of Navalny’s death.
Meanwhile, Vladimir Kara-Murza, the imprisoned Russian-British opposition leader, accused Putin of involvement in Navalny’s death. Kara Murza, who is serving a 25-year sentence for his outspoken criticism of the war in Ukraine, said: “One thing is certain to me: “Vladimir is personally responsible for the death of Alexei Navalny.”・This is President Putin.” Was sent to prison for a message conveyed by his allies.
On Monday, Britain’s Foreign Office minister ruled out a prisoner swap for Kara Murza, a Russian-British national who studied at Cambridge University.
Around 400 people have been detained across Russia since his death as they tried to pay their respects to Navalny with flowers and candles, according to a Russian group that monitors political arrests.
Some Russian men detained during the mourning period were given military draft papers while in custody.
