Russians refuse to let Navalny's mother into morgue; Kremlin official slams West's statements as rude

Ludmila Navalnaya arrived at the morgue in the town of Salekhard, Russia, on the morning of 19 February, where the body of her son, opposition politician Alexei Navalny, was allegedly kept. Still, neither she nor her lawyers were allowed in.

Source: Navalny's spokeswoman, Kira Yarmish, on Twitter; Novaya Gazeta (New Newspaper), a Russian socio-political newspaper; Kremlin-aligned Russian news agency RIA Novosti

Quote from Yarmish: "Alexei’s mother and his lawyers arrived at the morgue early in the morning. They were not allowed to go in. One of the lawyers was literally pushed out. When the staff [were] asked if Alexei’s body was there, they did not answer.

The Investigative Committee [of Russia] informed the mother and the lawyers that the investigation [into] the death of Navalny has been extended. They [won’t] say how long it will take. The cause of death is still ‘unknown’.

They lie [to] buy time for themselves and do not even [try to] hide it."

Details: Ivan Zhdanov, director of the Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF), established by Alexei Navalny in 2011, said: "We went through this ordeal after the poisoning in Omsk. His possessions were similarly not returned back then. The investigation period was extended repeatedly, and they still never gave us any verdicts."

Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the President of the Russian Federation, claimed that the release of the body to relatives was not the Kremlin's responsibility: "We have nothing to do with this matter."

According to him, the investigation into the circumstances of Navalny's death is ongoing, and all necessary actions are being taken.

Peskov rejected Western hints that Putin was responsible for Navalny's death.

Quote from Peskov: "In a situation where no solid information has come to light, we believe it is absolutely inappropriate to engage in such… let’s say, frankly rude speculation. This is not befitting of the statesmen from whose mouths we heard such remarks."

Previously: On 17 February, the body of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was not released to his family for burial.

Background:

• In December, the opposition leader was transferred to Correctional Facility No. 3, known as Polyarnyi Volk (Polar Wolf), which is located in Kharp in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Siberia.
• On the afternoon of 16 February, Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service reported the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny at Correctional Facility No. 3 in Kharp, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, in northwestern Siberia.
• On the same day, Navalny's wife, Yulia, said at the Munich Security Conference that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and his associates must be brought to justice for all their crimes.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his US counterpart Joseph Biden also blamed Vladimir Putin for the death of Alexei Navalny.

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