Russian Opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s funeral service will take place on Friday in Moscow, according to his spokesperson Kira Yarmysh.
“March 1st: farewell in the morning, then at 2 p.m. funeral service in Maryino (church) and at 4 p.m. burial at Borisov Cemetery.”
The post, which was shared on X, also alleged that the date for the 29th was being organised so as not to clash with President Putin’s state-of the-union address, which is scheduled to take place on that day.
“We originally planned the farewell and funeral for February 29th, it was just the right day for a number of reasons. And it quickly became clear that by February 29th there was not a single person who could dig a grave. By the 1st it is possible, and by the 28th it is possible, but on the 29th the grave is not being dug. The real reason is clear. The Kremlin understands that nobody will need Putin and his message on the day of farewell to Alexei.”
The opposition leader’s spokeswoman also accused the Kremlin in the post of making sure that finding a crematorium and funeral for the service was difficult.
In a Politico report on Tuesday Yarmysh was quoted as saying, “Since yesterday, (Monday) we have been looking for a place to hold Alexei’s farewell. We have contacted various private and public funeral agencies, commercial venues, and funeral parlours…In one place we were directly told that funeral agencies were prohibited from working with us.”
Navalny, 47, who was a critic of the Russian president died in a penal colony in the Arctic on Feb. 16. His supporters are accusing the president of having him murdered. His wife, Yulia Navalnaya, had accused President Putin of not handing over her husband’s body. in a video message on YouTube last week, and said he was not a true Christian.
