Who was Alexei Navalny, the Russian opponent who died of poisoning from frogs in South America

Who was Alexei Navalny, Putin’s main opponent who died in prison Alexei Navalny was the main leader of the opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Known internationally for exposing corruption in the country, he died on February 16, 2024 in a penal colony in the Arctic, according to Russian authorities. According to an analysis carried out by the United Kingdom and its allies France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands, Navalny died of poisoning found in frogs in South America. Navalny was from a family with links to the Soviet Army. He graduated in Law, studied finance and participated in a leadership training program at Yale University, in the United States. He began his political career in the liberal Yabloko party, from which he was expelled after internal disagreements and criticism of positions considered nationalist. File photo shows Alexei Navalny during protests on February 29, 2020 Pavel Golovkin/AP Navalny gained notoriety for using blogs and social media to publicize investigations into corruption involving officials and businesspeople close to the Kremlin. In 2011, he founded the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), responsible for reports and videos that had great repercussions inside and outside the country. He also popularized the expression “party of bandits and thieves” to refer to United Russia, a ruling party. During the 2011 and 2012 protests against electoral fraud, Navalny established himself as the main leader of street demonstrations, bringing together thousands of people. In 2013, he ran for mayor of Moscow and obtained around 27% of the votes — a result considered significant given the state’s dominance over the political system and the media. He was barred from running in the 2018 presidential election after corruption convictions that allies called politically motivated. Throughout the 2010s, Navalny was detained several times. Human rights organizations denounced political persecution. In 2020, he fell ill during a trip and, according to Western doctors, he was the victim of poisoning with a nerve agent. Navalny held the Russian security service directly responsible. Even in prison, Navalny continued to criticize the government and the invasion of Ukraine, which he called a “stupid war”. After successive convictions, his sentence exceeded 30 years in prison. At the end of 2023, he was transferred to a maximum security penal colony in the Arctic, where he spent periods without contact with lawyers and family. Russian authorities said he died after a sudden illness during his outing. Allies and Western governments disputed the version and called for an independent investigation.

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