Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, currently incarcerated, has been transferred to a penal colony in the Arctic, according to his allies on Monday. This development follows a period of over two weeks during which his location remained undisclosed.
Jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been moved to a penal colony in the Arctic, allies said on Monday, after over two weeks during which his whereabouts were unknown.
Authorities transferred Russia's most prominent opposition politician to an isolated penal colony three months before a presidential vote expected to easily hand Vladimir Putin a fifth term.
"We have found Alexei Navalny," his ally, Kira Yarmysh, said on social media.
"He is now in IK-3 in the settlement of Kharp in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District," Yarmysh added. "His lawyer visited him today. Alexei is doing well."
The district of Kharp, home to about 5,000 people, is located above the Arctic Circle.
It is "one of the most northern and remote colonies," said Ivan Zhdanov, who manages Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation.
"Conditions there are harsh, with a special regime in the permafrost zone" and very little contact with the outside world, Zhdanov said.
Washington welcomed reports that the dissident was finally located alive, but slammed Moscow for its "malicious targeting of Navalny and more than 600 other political prisoners Russia has imprisoned."
In a statement on Christmas Day, the State Department said: "We remain deeply concerned for Mr. Navalny's wellbeing and the conditions of his unjust detention."
The State Department said that it joined Navalny's family and supporters "in calling for his immediate release, without conditions," and for Russia to "end its escalating repression of independent voices in Russia, who are subject to relentless harassment and intimidation for exercising their human rights."
Navalny mobilized huge anti-government protests before being jailed in 2021 after surviving an attempt to assassinate him by poisoning.
Allies believe the Kremlin aimed to further isolate the vocal critic.
"From the very beginning, it was clear that authorities wanted to isolate Alexei, especially before the elections," Zhdanov said.
Russia will hold a presidential vote in March 2024, with Putin as the undisputed favorite.
Several Kremlin-friendly parties are due to put forward candidates for the vote in March, but the real opposition has been sidelined.
Navalny's movement in particular has been targeted by Kremlin repression.
Even before the offensive in Ukraine, Navalny's organization was declared extremist, which facilitated the prosecution of members and supporters.
Khalil Wakim, with AFP
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