Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, said on Wednesday that tests conducted in two foreign laboratories concluded he was poisoned before he died in custody. She said his supporters managed to move biological samples out of Russia, where they were analyzed in separate countries.
“These labs in two different countries reached the same conclusion: Alexei was killed. More specifically, he was poisoned,” Navalnaya said in a video posted on social media. She urged the laboratories to publish their findings, accusing them of withholding results for “political considerations.”
How have Russian officials responded?
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said he was unaware of Navalnaya’s statement and declined comment, according to the Associated Press.
Navalny died in February 2024 while serving a 19-year sentence in an Arctic penal colony. Russian officials said he became ill after a walk and later attributed his death to “sudden death syndrome.” State investigators later said his death was caused by arrhythmia.
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Navalnaya disputed those accounts, saying her husband had no history of heart disease. She also shared photos that she said showed vomit in his cell. The BBC noted the images are purported cell photos; the outlet did not independently verify them.
Navalny’s supporters have accused the Russian government of involvement, which Moscow denies.
What new evidence has surfaced?
In an X post, Maria Pevchikh, a longtime associate of Navalny’s, posted photos of the prison cell where Navalny collapsed. She alleged he was left on the floor in agony, vomiting and calling out, while guards locked the door rather than intervening.
The pictures showed a bare room with a few personal items — a mug, notebook, Bible, dictionary, hat and gloves. Pevchikh said Navalny had spent years in such solitary cells.
Why does this matter now?
Navalny, who built his reputation by exposing corruption and organizing mass protests, survived a Novichok poisoning in 2020 before returning to Russia, where he was detained. Labs in Germany, France and Sweden as well as the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons attributed the exposure to a Novichok nerve agent, according to the BBC.
Navalnaya’s announcement and the newly released photos have renewed questions about what happened in his last hours.
“I will not be silent. I affirm that Vladimir Putin is guilty of killing my husband, Alexei Navalny,” Navalnaya said.
Despite warnings from authorities, thousands gathered in Moscow for Navalny’s funeral in March 2024. His death removed Russia’s most visible opposition leader, leaving many of his allies either imprisoned or in exile.
