Thousands of Russians gathered this Friday (1st) in front of the Moscow church where the farewell to opposition leader Alexei Navalny will take place, who died two weeks ago in an Arctic prison under unclear circumstances.
The opposition's team reported this morning that Navalny's family went to the morgue to collect the politician's body, but so far they were unable to do so. “The body has not been delivered so far,” Navalny’s spokeswoman, Kira Yarmish, wrote on her X social network account.
According to what Agency EFE was able to verify, the Russians formed a long line around the Orthodox church in the Mariino neighborhood, three hours before the start of the funeral ceremony.
“Come and say your last goodbye to Alexei Navalny if you are in Moscow. Those who for various reasons are not there to do so will be grateful,” said one of Navalny’s collaborators, Leonid Volkov, currently in exile, on the X social network.
At 12pm (local time, 6am Brasília), the late politician's allies also started a live broadcast from the farewell location. Among the Muscovites who came to say their final goodbyes to Navalny, defying the authorities' warnings, people of all ages can be seen, some of whom hold carnations and red roses in their hands.
People wait patiently for the event to begin under the watchful eye of a large number of police officers.
Both next to the temple, where the wake is held, and in the cemetery, where the politician will be buried, metal fences were installed and a significant police force was deployed.
Several surveillance cameras and other devices that can serve as internet and cell phone signal inhibitors were also placed on the cemetery's posts.
Navalny's family denounced for nine days the authorities' refusal to hand over the politician's body after his death.
The day before, warnings from some universities to their students were posted on Russian social media not to participate in demonstrations related to Navalny under threat of expulsion. (With EFE Agency)
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