The mother of late Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny said Monday she felt vindicated by a European assessment confirming that her son died from poisoning, urging for “justice” as supporters marked two years since his death in prison.
Navalny, known as one of President Vladimir Putin’s most vocal domestic critics, passed away in an Arctic prison colony in February 2024 while serving a 19-year sentence.
On Saturday, Britain, Sweden, France, Germany, and the Netherlands released a joint statement asserting that Navalny was poisoned with epibatidine, a toxin found in poison dart frogs, citing analysis of samples taken from his body.
“This confirms what we knew from the very beginning. We knew that our son did not simply die in prison, he was murdered,” Lyudmila Navalnaya told reporters, including AFP, outside the Moscow cemetery where her son is buried.
“I think it will take some time, but we will find out who did it. Of course, we want this to happen in our country, and we want justice to prevail,” she added.
While the Kremlin has not commented on the European findings, it has repeatedly denied any involvement in Navalny’s death.
Early Monday, dozens visited his grave, including foreign diplomats, an AFP reporter observed. Some mourners covered their faces with masks or scarves.
Russian authorities had previously labelled Navalny and his anti-corruption organization “extremist,” making it a punishable offense to mention him or his exiled foundation.
