MOSCOW, 17 Feb: Alex Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s top domestic opponent fell unconscious and died on Friday at the polar wolf colony where he was serving a three-decade sentence, authorities said.
Soon after the news of his death spread, world leaders blamed the Russian President Vladamir Putin for Navalny’s death.
The US President, Canadian Prime Minister, NATO’s chief, German Chancellor, all condemned the demise of Navalny and held Putin responsible for his death.
Why world leaders are blaming Putin?
Navalny rose to prominence a decade ago by publicly speaking and documenting large scale corruption inside Putin’s regime.
For years, Navalny had protested against Putin’s authoritarian ambitions and the lack of transparency in running the affairs of the government.
Navalny’s fearless reporting and anti-corruption activism investigated corruption by high-ranking Russian officials.
Soon the public learned about all of the palaces, yachts and private planes that Putin’s oligarchs allegedly built, with all the money they stole from the Russian people, New York Post reported.
Navalny exposed Putin’s palace — a $1.35 billion Black Sea fortress with everything from casinos to a helipad built, according to Navalny, by Putin’s loyal oligarchs.
Navalny also exposed three of Putin’s massive superyachts, bought on someone else’s names due to sanctions.
In 2017, Navalny published video footage of a hidden island mansion near the Finnish border allegedly used by Vladimir Putin as a holiday retreat.
“His personal assets are registered under the names of his close friends who have become fabulously wealthy over the last 17 years.” he said in a YouTube video at the time.
In 2016, Navalny exposed Putin’s 200-acre “Milovka Manor,” where then-Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev was said to holiday with his family.
