| | | | | |
| | | | | The Real Russia. Today. Monday, February 19, 2024 The war in Ukraine 🪖 In photos: The final days of the battle for Avdiivka Two days after the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops, Russian forces have completed their takeover of Avdiivka. According to Russia’s Defense Ministry, its soldiers took “full control” of Avdiivka’s coke plant on February 19, eliminating the town’s last pocket of resistance. Located near the city of Donetsk, Avdiivka has been a frontline town since 2014 — and it continued to serve as a Ukrainian stronghold long after Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022. The Russian army began an all-out assault on Avdiivka last October and the push to encircle the town dragged on for months, reportedly costing Russia tens of thousands of casualties and major equipment losses. - 🪖 Ukraine’s top commander announces withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Avdiivka - 🪖 Russia has full control of Avdiivka Coke and Chemical Plant, says Russian Defense Ministry - 🕯️ Russian helicopter pilot who defected to Ukraine reportedly found dead in Spain - 🛩️ NATO promises to supply Ukraine with one million drones Alexey Navalny’s death The fight for answers More than three days after Alexey Navalny’s death, the Russian authorities have yet to hand his body over to his relatives or disclose an official cause of death. Below is a timeline of the main developments in his family’s fight to recover Navalny’s body and determine the truth about what happened to him. Friday: Almost immediately after Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service announces Alexey Navalny’s death, Russian propaganda network RT claims that Navalny died of a “detached blood clot.” However, a doctor who advised Navalny’s associates tells Meduza that this is an “unlikely” cause of death and would be impossible to confirm without an independent autopsy. Saturday: An employee of the prison where Alexey Navalny died says his body has been sent to a morgue in the nearby town of Salekhard. When Navalny’s mother and lawyer travel to the Salekhard morgue, however, they find it is closed. When the lawyer calls the phone number on the door, he’s told that the body isn’t there. Another one of Navalny’s lawyers is told by an official from the local branch of the Russian Investigative Committee that the cause of Navalny’s death has “not been determined” and that his body will not be given to his family until the investigation is complete. Meanwhile, a source tells Novaya Gazeta Europe that Alexey Navalny’s body has been in the Salekhard morgue since Friday evening but that no autopsy has been performed yet. A city paramedic tells the publication that Navalny’s body has bruises consistent with a seizure or outside restraint during convulsions and with CPR. In the evening, human rights activists at the OVD-Info project call on Russians to contact the Federal Investigative Committee and demand that the authorities hand over Alexey Navalny’s body to his relatives. Sunday: Journalists from Mediazona share traffic cam footage from Friday night that shows a convoy of official vehicles traveling towards Salekhard from a town near the prison where Navalny died. By the early afternoon, more than 12,000 people have sent appeals to Russia’s Investigative Committee demanding that Alexey Navalny’s body be released. Monday: In the morning, Alexey Navalny’s mother and his lawyers are turned away from the morgue in Salekhard. One of the lawyers is “literally pushed out,” Navalny’s press secretary Kira Yarmysh reports. Later in the day, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov tells journalist that the issue of returning Navalny’s body is not being handled by the Kremlin because it’s “not a function of the presidential administration.” In the evening, Kira Yarmysh says that according to the Russian Investigative Committee, Navalny’s body has been sent for a “chemical examination” that will take 14 days. By Monday night, more than 65,000 people have contacted the Investigative Committee to demand Navalny’s body be given to his family. Russia after Navalny 💪 Yulia Navalnaya announces she will continue her husband’s work (5-min read) In a video posted on Alexey Navalny’s YouTube channel on Monday, the Russian opposition leader’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, announced that she plans to continue his work in his absence. She also said she knows “exactly why Putin killed Alexey three days ago” and that Navalny’s team will reveal more about this in the near future. 🗣️ Kremlin insiders weigh in on Alexey Navalny’s death and what it means for Vladimir Putin’s regime (7-min read) Officials in the Kremlin’s political bloc see Alexey Navalny’s death as “a very negative development” — for Vladimir Putin’s reelection campaign. At the same time, members of the Putin administration do not expect the opposition politician’s demise to seriously affect the results of next month’s tightly controlled presidential vote. This is according to two sources close to the Putin administration, one source close to the leadership of the ruling United Russia party, and a Kremlin political strategist, all of whom spoke to Meduza on condition of anonymity. Podcast episode 🎧 The Naked Pravda: The death of Alexey Navalny (24-min listen) Meduza reports on opposition leader Alexey Navalny’s death in prison and speaks to experts about his legacy and the political science behind autocrats eliminating dissident threats. This week’s guests are Meduza journalists Evgeny Feldman and Maxim Trudolyubov, and scholars Graeme Robertson and Erica Frantz. Inside Russia’s prison system ⛓️ Former inmates on life and death in the Arctic prison where Alexey Navalny died (20-min read) At the time of his death, Alexey Navalny was serving a 19 year sentence in a maximum-security prison north of the Arctic Circle, in Russia’s Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. Nicknamed the “Polar Wolf” prison, Correctional Facility No. 3 (abbreviated as IK-3, in Russian) has a notorious reputation. For more insight into the harsh conditions on the inside, Meduza spoke to former inmates who served time there. Here’s what they told us about life and death inside the prison where Alexey Navalny died. - ⛓️ A look inside Russia’s ‘Polar Wolf’ colony (Meduza explains what we know about the living conditions, prisoner treatment, and medical resources at IK-3.) - 🔎 Russian lawmaker asks prosecutors to launch criminal negligence probe into Alexey Navalny’s death - 🎥 Several prison cameras not working on day of Navalny’s death, says human rights group Gulagu.net - 💬 Inmate at Navalny’s prison shares events leading up to politician’s death, contradicts official statements - ⏳ Human rights lawyer says Russian authorities can legally keep Alexey Navalny’s body for up to 30 days - 🛬 Russian federal investigators traveled to prison region after Navalny’s death, says source We got The Beet. Don’t miss Meduza’s weekly newsletter (separate from the one you’re reading here)! 🇬🇪 Check out the latest edition → Georgia’s Lazarus: Bidzina Ivanishvili’s latest political comeback and the law of diminishing returns (23-min read) Remembering Alexey Navalny 📷 Navalny’s life in photos Meduza commemorates Navalny’s transformation from a young Moscow activist and anti-corruption blogger into the main figure in the Russian opposition and one of the most famous politicians in the world. ✊ Pussy Riot activists hold memorial protest for Navalny opposite Russian Embassy in Berlin (Photo report) On February 18, Pussy Riot activists held a memorial protest for Alexey Navalny in Berlin. Group members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Lucy Shtein, as well as Navalny associate Lyubov Sobol and former Russian state TV employee Marina Ovsyannikova, were among those turned out to demonstrate in front of the Russian Embassy. The protesters planned to march from there to the Brandenburg Gate but were stopped by police. 🇹🇷 Istanbul police have allowed pro-Palestinian demonstrations. They’ve allowed rallies in support of Ukraine. But they stopped Navalny’s mourners. (7-min read) On February 16, several dozen people gathered in Istanbul to honor the memory of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, whose death prison officials announced hours earlier. The memorials took place in two districts of the city, Kadıköy and Taksim. Though most attendees did not hold any posters or chant slogans, the local police designated the public assembly as an illegal political protest. ⚖️ Belarusian writer and Nobel Prize winner Svetlana Alexievich on the implications of Navalny’s death (3-min read) As the news that Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny had died in prison on Friday spread, thousands of people around the world expressed their grief at his loss and their anger at the Russian authorities. Now, many are trying to understand the broader implications of his death. Belarusian writer and recipient of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature Svetlana Alexievich spoke with the Belarusian newspaper Nasha Niva about the potential impact Navalny’s death could have on political prisoners in Belarus, its implications for authoritarian leaders’ impunity, and its far-reaching consequences for global power dynamics. 🥀 Protesters in Russia and around the globe gather to mourn Alexey Navalny (Photo report) Across Russia, mourners expressed their anger and sorrow over Navalny’s death by bringing flowers to monuments honoring the victims of political repressions. In some cities, police were stationed around these memorials; in Ulyanovsk, people in plainclothes began removing flowers and taking pictures of protesters. In Novosibirsk, the authorities cordoned off a statue, citing a supposed bomb threat. In Moscow, at the Wall of Grief on Academician Sakharov Avenue, an activist was arrested after staging a one-person picket protest. Outside of Russia, people have begun bringing flowers and anti-Putin posters to Russian embassies. 🕯️ Meduza’s Russian readers react to Alexey Navalny’s death (7-min read) Meduza asked our Russian readers to share what Navalny’s life and work meant to them, and we received hundreds of letters in response. We’ve translated some of the most noteworthy replies into English. - 🕯️ More than 100 people arrested across Russia at memorial protests for Alexey Navalny - 🥀 U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracey lays flowers in Moscow for Alexey Navalny - 📍 Russian digital map service reportedly blocking reviews at memorial sites visited by Navalny mourners - 🥀 Memorials to Navalny in Russian cities taken down, new ones appear - ⚖️ E.U. to rename human rights sanctions regime in honor of Navalny As the world turns 🪖 Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur on the threat of Putin’s Russia and preparing for the worst (16-min read) With the prospect of a total Ukrainian victory looking more distant than ever, Vladimir Putin’s revanchist rhetoric at an all-time high, and Washington’s future willingness to defend its NATO allies in doubt, Russia’s Baltic neighbors have no choice but to take seriously the possibility of Moscow invading their territory. To learn what measures Estonia is taking to protect itself against such an assault, Meduza in English senior news editor Sam Breazeale sat down with Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur on the sidelines of the NATO defense ministers’ meeting in Brussels last week. No country can be free without independent media. In January 2023, the Russian authorities outlawed Meduza, banning our work in the country our colleagues call home. Just supporting Meduza carries the risk of criminal prosecution for Russian nationals, which is why we’re turning to our international audience for help. Your assistance makes it possible for thousands of people in Russia to read Meduza and stay informed. Consider a small but recurring contribution to provide the most effective support. Donate here. | | | | | | | This is an email newsletter from Kevin Rothrock, the managing editor of Meduza in English. You can find more information about our crowdfunding campaign here, where you can also sign up for one-time or recurring donations. In January 2023, the Russian authorities outlawed Meduza, designating our media outlet as an “undesirable organization.” In other words, our newsroom’s work is now completely banned in the country our founders call home. And Russian nationals who support Meduza can face criminal prosecution. Today, Meduza’s need for support from people across the globe — from readers like you — has never been more urgent. Meduza is still operating in Russia. Here’s how we manage that. © Meduza, 2024 | | | | | | -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#29006): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/29006 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/104461239/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/8674936/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
