Thousands defied Vladimir Putin to pay their last respects to the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, RadarOnline.com can report.
In the latest development to come two weeks after Navalny, 47, was found dead inside the Arctic penal colony where he was imprisoned since December, thousands of Russians reportedly gathered to attend the late opposition leader’s funeral in Moscow on Friday.
According to the New York Post, video footage from Barisovskoye cemetery captured the solemn moment that Navalny's mother – Lyudmila Navalnaya – tenderly made the sign of the cross over her son's body.
Navalny’s father, Anatoly Navalny, could also be seen bestowing a final kiss upon his late son’s brow.
Navalny's body was gently shrouded in white before it was buried following the touching farewell on Friday.
Meanwhile, mourners gathered outside the cemetery to pay their last respects to Navalny. Many reportedly chanted the late Putin critic’s name in a defiant, moving display of solidarity and remembrance.
Navalny’s burial reportedly took place following a hastily arranged funeral service at the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God Soothe My Sorrows. The funeral was said to be attended by a select few hundred of Navalny's closest relatives and friends.
Somber images captured the poignant scene of Navalny's body resting in a coffin adorned with bouquets of red and white roses while candles flickered solemnly around him inside the church.
Navalny's grieving parents sat beside their late son with their faces marked with anguish while surrounded by other mourning relatives amidst an atmosphere of profound sorrow,
Many of Navalny's supporters alleged that the Russian Orthodox priest conducting the service was pressured into hastening proceedings to limit public access to the funeral and burial service.
Scores of people also reportedly lined the streets along the funeral route and expressed their support for the late Russian opposition leader’s cause.
"Putin is a murderer!" Navalny’s supporters reportedly shouted. "We will not forget! Russia will be free! No to war!"
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As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Navalny passed away on February 16 inside a Russian penal colony where he was imprisoned following his arrest in January 2021.
Although the details surrounding Navalny’s sudden and mysterious death were scarce, the late opposition leader’s widow – Yulia Navalnaya – suggested that Putin had her husband killed.
“We know exactly why Putin killed Alexei three days ago,” Navalnaya said in a nine-minute video uploaded to YouTube shortly after her husband’s death last month. “We will tell you about it soon.”
"We will definitely find out who exactly carried out this crime and how exactly,” she added. “We will name the names and show the faces.”
Meanwhile, Navalny’s mother was forced to fight with the Russian authorities to see her son’s deceased body.
She reportedly waited more than one week before she was granted access.
“For the fifth day, I have been unable to see him,” Lyudmila Navalnaya pleaded last week. “They wouldn’t release his body to me. And they’re not even telling me where he is.”
“I’m reaching out to you, Vladimir Putin,” Navalny’s mother continued. “The resolution of this matter depends solely on you.”