Russian president responsible for Navalny's death, EU parliament says

Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian state bear "criminal and political responsibility" for the death of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, a resolution from the European Parliament said on Thursday.

The resolution strongly condemned the death of Navalny, pledged full support to his widow Yulia Navalnaya to continue his work and called for Putin to be held accountable.

Navalny died aged 47 on February 16. He was weakened by a poison attack in 2020 and repeatedly held in solitary confinement in a Russian prison camp in the Siberian Arctic region, and is said to have collapsed while exercising in the icy prison yard and died despite attempts to resuscitate him.

There has not been an independent investigation about the circumstances of his death nor an independent autopsy report. According to Navalny's team, the death certificate mentions "natural" causes.

The EU legislature warned that Navalny's death in prison is another sign of the "increasing and systematic repression in Russia" and called for a transparent and full investigation.

The prominent opposition politician's funeral is set to take place on Friday in Moscow. His wife Navalnaya paid tribute to his memory in Strasbourg earlier in the week. She warned Russian police may arrest mourners at the ceremony.