Russia

Aide: Jailed Putin Critic Navalny's Illness May Be Slow Poisoning

APR 13 2023·Updated APR 14 2023

Story

Image credit: Reuters [via Al Jazeera]

The Facts

Alexei Navalny, Russia's most prominent opposition politician, is grappling with severe stomach pain in jail, which his spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, claims could be the result of slow-acting poison.
Reuters
Navalny's attorney, Vadim Kobzev, claims that after an ambulance was called to the prison last week, doctors refused to treat him, adding that the colony also refuses to administer medicine Navalny’s mother sends.
The Insider
In a video clip on Twitter, Yarmysh said that after the unknown ailment flared up last week, prison doctors injected Navalny with an unidentified medicine. She says she hasn't “rule[d] out” that her client “is being slowly poisoned.”
Al Jazeera
Navalny has suffered similar conditions in the past, with his lawyers also claiming he may have been poisoned in the spring of 2021 after suffering from a separate alleged poisoning in August 2020.
ABC News
Currently, Navalny is serving an 11.5-year prison sentence on charges of fraud, embezzlement, and breaking parole conditions when he traveled to Germany for medical treatment.
The Hill
Meanwhile, Moscow claims it has no knowledge of Navalny's health condition, which it says falls under the federal penitentiary service's reach. In the past, the prison administration has denied allegations of mistreatment.
Reuters

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The Spin

Anti-Russia narrative

There's no doubt that the Kremlin wants to silence Navalny, an outspoken critic of Pres. Vladimir Putin, given its politically-motivated charges against him. Regardless of whether these allegations of poisoning hold water, considering his repeated illnesses during his stints in isolated prison cells, they must be seriously investigated.

CNN

Pro-Russia narrative

Alexei Navalny's claims of being poisoned by Russian authorities have been proven false on multiple occasions. The truth is that Navalny is a convicted criminal that the West is using to mold new pretexts for anti-Russian sentiment. Any health issues he’s having while in solitary confinement have been properly addressed, and continued allegations of a mysterious poisoning plot are farcical.