The body of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been returned to his mother after a week-long struggle by his family following his unexpected death in an Arctic penal colony, Associated Press reports.
Navalny’s widow Yulia Navalnaya accused Russian President Putin of mocking Christianity after attempts to force Navalny’s mother to agree to a secret funeral. Navalny’s mother was allowed to see his body and was shown a medical certificate stating that he died of “natural causes.”
There have been widespread protests and detentions across Russia in support of Navalny. Kremlin officials deny involvement in Navalny’s death, dismissing the accusations as baseless.
