BREAKING NEWS: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, 47, died Friday in the Arctic Circle jail in Russia. The country’s prison service announced this Friday without giving the cause of his death, saying in a statement:
Navalny “felt unwell” after a walk, “almost immediately losing consciousness.” They said a medical team failed to resuscitate him.
This after video of him just the day before surfaced of Navalny looking healthy and laughing during a court hearing via video link.
“Make no mistake: Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death,” Mr. Biden said at a White House news conference. “What has happened to Navalny is even more proof of Putin’s brutality. No one should be fooled.”
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, his wife Yulia, opposition politician Lyubov Sobol and other demonstrators march in memory of murdered Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov in downtown Moscow on February 29, 2020. As the news of his suspicious death reverberates across the world, reaction is flooding in.
The U.N. Human Rights Office called for an independent investigation and Navalny’s wife, Yulia Navalnaya, called on “all the people in the world” to stand up for her husband. “We should fight this horrific regime in Russia today.”
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Russia has “some very serious questions to answer” about Navalny’s death, while European Council President Charles Michel said the bloc considers Russia “responsible for this tragic death.”
Vice President Harris reacted that it as “terrible news, which we are working to confirm. … If confirmed, this would be a further sign of [Vladimir] Putin’s brutality. Whatever story they tell, let us be clear, Russia is responsible.”
Supporters of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny have gathered outside of Russian embassies around the world to protest his death.