Alexei Navalny's widow demanded that his body be released for burial, accusing Vladimir Putin of “torturing” her husband to death as he did in his lifetime.
Yulia Navalnaya is accused Russian leader Of having a “false” faith because “no true Christian could do what Putin is doing now.”
She also said that he hid behind religion while choosing to “bomb sleeping civilians at night with holy missiles over the church” in an apparent reference to Moscow's deadly attack on civilians. Ukraine.
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Alexei Navalny and his wife Yulia in 2013. Photo: Reuters
Navalnaya criticized Putin in a six-minute video posted on YouTube.
In a separate post on Instagram, Navalny's daughter Dasha shared a photo of herself with her parents when she was a child, and the message read: “I love you, I kiss you, I hug you tightly, and I miss you very, very much, Dorme.”
This was her first direct tribute to her father since his death was confirmed a week ago.
It comes after Mr Navalny's mother said the authorities had done so He threatened to bury him In the remote Arctic colony where he died unless you agreed to bury him without a public funeral.
the 47-year-old imprisoned dissident collapsed and He failed to regain consciousness On February 16 under suspicious circumstances.
The prominent Kremlin critic was serving a three-decade prison sentence after years of persecution that included poisoning with a nerve agent in 2020.
Alexei Navalny has been imprisoned after years of persecution. Photo: AP
His death saw hundreds of Russians flock across the country to pay impromptu remembrances with flowers and candles.
The authorities have arrested dozens of people as they seek to suppress any significant outpouring of sympathy for Putin's staunchest opponents before the presidential elections, which he is almost certain to win.
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In the emotional video, Navalnaya, 47, dressed in black, said: “Give us my husband’s body.
“You tortured him alive, and now you continue to torture him dead. You mock the remains of the dead.”
She added: “We already knew that Putin's faith was false. But now we see it more clearly than ever before.”
“No true Christian could do what Putin is doing now with Alexei’s body.
“Give us back my husband’s body. We want to hold his burial ceremony in a humane manner, in the ground, as is the custom in Orthodox Christianity.”
Putin stressed his closeness to the Russian Orthodox Church. Photo: AP
Since returning to the Russian presidency in 2012, Putin has positioned himself as a defender of conservative traditional values against what he portrays as decadent Western liberalism.
He also stressed his closeness to the Russian Orthodox Church, where he regularly appears at religious events and speaks about his personal faith.
Navalnaya accused Putin of “hiding behind Christian values,” saying: “You only kill. You only bomb sleeping civilians at night. With missiles dedicated to the church.”
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She added in a warning to the regime: “If you consider yourself a true believer, know that you will be held accountable for all of this and not just the people.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected the allegations indicating Putin's involvement in Navalny's death, describing them as “absolutely baseless and shameless accusations against the Russian head of state.”
Orthodox Christianity is the most popular religion in Russia, with about 70% of the population identifying as Orthodox Christians according to an independent survey conducted in 2022.
