The body of Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who died unexpectedly in a Russian prison this month, was given to his mother on Saturday in the Arctic city of Salekhard, his spokeswoman said.
The news was shared by Navalny’s team, who also shared on X on Thursday that his death certificate listed his cause of death as natural causes.
In a video released before his body was returned, Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin, who she called “demonic,” was “torturing” the corpse of his political opponent.
This wasn’t the first time in the last two weeks that Navalny’s family has accused Putin of playing a role in his death. Navalny had previously survived a poisoning attempt in 2020 and had spent years in prison under harsh conditions, including long stints in solitary confinement.
The Kremlin has denied playing a role in Navalny’s death.
However, Navalny’s allies are urging his supporters to continue pushing for change and “not to relax.”
Kira Yarmysh, Navalny’s spokeswoman, wrote on X that there was no certainty that Russian authorities would let his relatives hold a funeral “the way the family wants and the way Alexei deserves.”
In a joint statement, the leaders of the G7 called for “all unjustly detained prisoners” in Russia to be freed and for clarification on the circumstances surrounding Navalny’s untimely demise.
“We will hold those culpable for Navalny’s death accountable, including by continuing to impose restrictive measures in response to human rights violations and abuses in Russia and taking other actions,” the G7 wrote.