Imprisoned Russian opposition chief Alexey Navalny, whose whereabouts weren’t recognized for over two weeks, has been moved to a penal colony within the Arctic, allies stated Monday.
The disappearance of Russia’s most outstanding opposition politician, who mobilized large protests earlier than being jailed in 2021, had spurred considerations from allies, rights teams and Western governments.
EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA / REUTERS
It signaled a possible jail switch, which might take weeks in Russia as prisoners are slowly moved by rail between far-flung services.
“We have discovered Alexey Navalny. He is now in IK-3 within the settlement of Kharp within the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District,” his spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, stated on social media.
“His lawyer visited him right this moment. Alexey is doing nicely,” Yarmysh added.
The district of Kharp, home to about 5,000 individuals, is situated above the Arctic Circle.
It is “probably the most northern and distant colonies,” stated Ivan Zhdanov, who manages Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation.
“Conditions there are harsh, with a particular regime within the permafrost zone” and little or no contact with the skin world, Zhdanov stated.
Navalny was first jailed after surviving an try and assassinate him by poisoning.
A court docket prolonged his sentence to 19 years on extremism expenses, and dominated that he be moved to a safer, harsher jail.
“From the very starting, it was clear that authorities wished to isolate Alexey, particularly earlier than the elections,” Zhdanov additionally stated.
Russia is scheduled to carry a presidential vote in March. President Vladimir Putin is predicted to simply win a fifth time period.
While Navalny’s location was nonetheless unknown, Leonid Volkov, Navalny’s chief of employees, stated on social media that, “The proven fact that that is occurring proper now (though Navalny ought to have been transferred to a different colony two months in the past) — now that ‘elections’ have been introduced and Navalny’s group has launched the ‘Russia with out Putin’ marketing campaign — is 0% unintended and 100% straight political guide management from the Kremlin.
“It isn’t any secret to Putin who his fundamental opponent is in these ‘elections.’ And he desires to be sure that Navalny’s voice isn’t heard. This implies that everybody ought to change into Navalny’s voice,” Volkov stated.
Moscow has for years sidelined opposition figures from elections and political life, a clampdown that accelerated after the Kremlin ordered Russian troops into Ukraine in 2022.
