On February 16, Navalny, Russia's most prominent opposition leader, 47, suddenly fell into a coma after walking in a prison in northern Siberia, about 1,900 kilometers northeast of Moscow, and was pronounced dead by doctors.
Navalny is Russia's best-known opposition leader and has been active in the anti-corruption campaign since 2007. In 2011, the Anti-Corruption Foundation was established. has been openly mocking the elites around Putin and making accusations of massive corruption in the government.
In August 2020, Navalny was examined at a hospital in Berlin, Germany, and was found to have been poisoned with a nerve agent, Novichok, and nearly died.
In early 2021, he voluntarily returned to Russia from Germany, but was arrested by the authorities, triggering mass protests by tens of thousands of people.
In August 2023, Navalny was sentenced to nine years in prison for alleged embezzlement and contempt of court. Subsequently, Navalny was sentenced to 19 years in prison for "extremism". Last year, he was transferred to a prison in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Oblast in northern Siberia, where conditions are harsh and virtually isolated from the outside world.
Navalny's mother said she had seen her son in prison on the 12th of June, when she said he was alive, healthy and happy.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz praised Navalny for paying with his life for his bravery, "he stood up for democracy and freedom in Russia, and it is clear that he also paid with his life for his courage."