Burying Navalny
Live updates as Muscovites bid farewell to Alexey Navalny
What’s happening: Loved ones and supporters attend funeral services for the late opposition leader Alexey Navalny.
Where: Funeral services began around 2 p.m. Moscow time (6 a.m. EST) at the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows, and Navalny’s burial took place shortly afterward at nearby Borisovskoye Cemetery.
YouTube livestreams: Team Navalny (in Russian), The Associated Press, and The Independent (no narration)
1 марта 2024 г. 10:08:29
The current scene at the entrance to the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:09:58
Navalny’s grave
Alexey Navalny’s grave is waiting at Borisovskoye Cemetery. Team Navalny members say the plot is located near the cemetery’s entrance.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:15:40
The Kremlin’s spokesman comments on Navalny’s funeral
Vladimir Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, told journalists on Friday that “the Kremlin has nothing to say to Navalny’s relatives on the day of his funeral” and claimed that the Putin administration “cannot assess Navalny as a political figure,” but Peskov also warned that any demonstrators “will be held accountable under the law.”
Ahead of Friday, education officials nationwide have circulated a propaganda film on social media addressed to young people that describes the many dire legal consequences for attending unpermitted public assemblies.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:17:17
A large line of people is growing outside the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:25:11
Fencing corridor set up from subway to church
The Russian authorities have set up a metal fencing corridor from the subway station to the church where Navalny’s funeral will be held, and journalists have reported mobile Internet issues in the area.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:26:39
Pavel Sychev, the head of barred presidential candidate Boris Nadezhdin’s Voronezh campaign office, was reportedly arrested while on his way to Moscow for Navalny’s funeral.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:26:53
Navalny’s cemetery is reportedly closed to public visitors today
Borisovskoye Cemetery, where Alexey Navalny is scheduled to be buried, is reportedly closed to the public today.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:27:05
A long line outside the church
A line has formed outside the Moscow church where Navalny’s funeral will be held. A Mediazona correspondent estimates it to be over 2,000 feet long.
Novaya Gazeta correspondents report that it takes more than 10 minutes to walk from the beginning to the end of the line, which they say has stretched to over half a mile in length.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:30:41
Morgue workers dragged their feet
The morgue holding Navalny’s body was supposed to hand it over to his relatives at 10:00 a.m. Moscow time. According to Navalny’s press secretary, however, they didn’t release it until about three hours later.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:31:41
The line outside the church
1 марта 2024 г. 10:33:07
Latest updates
- The hearse carrying Navalny’s body is en route to the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows in Moscow’s Maryino District. Morgue workers were late in turning over Navalny’s body.
- The line of mourners waiting to enter the church is roughly 700 meters (almost 2,300 feet) long. No one has yet been admitted into the church.
- Mobile Internet services are reportedly failing in the region. People on the ground report that sending a single Telegram message takes several minutes.
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Putin administration “has nothing to say” to Navalny’s relatives on the day of his burial.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:33:43
Parents warned to keep their kids away
Parents of schoolchildren in Moscow’s Maryino district, where Navalny’s funeral is set to be held, have been warned that their kids should remain at school until 3:15 p.m. “to ensure their safety.” At least one school has even tacked on an extra lesson at the end of the school day.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:44:54
Anti-war politician who came closest to 2024 presidential ballot attends
Boris Nadezhdin is reportedly attending Navalny’s funeral and burial. He said on Friday:
Of course, today is a tragic day because Alexey’s death is a great loss not just for his family and loved ones, to whom I offer my condolences, but it’s also a loss for a huge number of people, I think, for many millions in Russia and not only in Russia. Let’s hope that today’s farewell goes ahead without any incidents. I think many thousands of people will come, and I expect to see many of my old and new comrades in our right for a peaceful and free Russia.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:50:53
Foreign ambassadors arrive for Navalny’s funeral
U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy, German Ambassador to Russia Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, French Ambassador to Russia Pierre Levy, and representatives from several other countries have arrived at the church where Navalny’s funeral will be held.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:55:01
The hearse carrying Navalny’s body has arrived at the church, according to his team.
1 марта 2024 г. 10:56:17
People applaud as Navalny’s body arrives at the church.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:01:17
The crowd chants “Navalny!” as his coffin is taken from the hearse.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:02:11
Some people allowed onto church grounds
Navalny ally Ivan Zhdanov reports that some people are now being allowed onto the church grounds, though not yet into the church itself. He said there’s almost no Internet connection.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:16:17
Pallbearers carry Navalny’s coffin to the church
1 марта 2024 г. 11:17:05
Nearby schoolchildren join in Navalny chants
Children in a school near the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows are chanting “Navalny!” from the windows, according to the Telegram channel Sirena.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:20:08
Borisovskoye Cemetery should be open to visitors today
A consultant who works for the Borisovskoye Cemetery told journalists at 7x7 Media that the grounds remain open to the public today during regular hours, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Moscow time. Earlier on Friday, Sota Media published a photograph showing a sign that claimed the cemetery is closed to visitors on Friday, March 1.
Journalists on the ground at Borisovskoye Cemetery say there are metal detectors at the entrance to the grounds, but the gates themselves remain closed, and reporters aren’t being admitted.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:31:27
Navalny’s team says family members are being let into the church.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:44:58
Navalny’s parents arrive for funeral
Alexey Navalny’s parents, Anatoly Navalny and Lyudmila Navalnaya, arrive at the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows in Moscow, where their son’s funeral will be held.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:53:14
Alexey Navalny’s body lies in repose at the church
1 марта 2024 г. 11:56:42
Police nationwide are guarding memorials to Soviet political repressions
Journalists report a heightened police presence at Soviet repressions memorials (where people often mourn victims of contemporary Russian authoritarianism) in downtown Chita, Tomsk (where Navalny was poisoned with Novichok in 2020), Vladivostok, Abakan, and Vladimir.
1 марта 2024 г. 11:58:35
Navalny’s body leaves church
The coffin with Navalny’s body is being taken from the church to the cemetery, reports Navalny ally Ivan Zhdanov.
1 марта 2024 г. 12:05:02
Lyudmila Navalnaya says goodbye to her son
1 марта 2024 г. 12:10:02
Navalny’s body arrives at cemetery
The coffin with Navalny’s body has arrived at the cemetery, says Navalny associate Ivan Zhdanov.
1 марта 2024 г. 12:11:05
Only 300 or so mourners allowed inside the church
A correspondent for Novaya Gazeta newspaper reports that fewer than 300 people were allowed to attend Navalny’s funeral services, which “were held as quickly as possible.” Thousands of mourners gathered outside the church.
1 марта 2024 г. 12:23:17
Mourners chant, “Putin is a murderer!”
1 марта 2024 г. 12:30:54
Mourners applaud Navalny’s mother, Lyudmila, telling her, “Thank you for your son.”
1 марта 2024 г. 12:34:50
Police block vehicle carrying coffin
Navalny ally Ivan Zhdanov says police have blocked the vehicle transporting the pallbearers to the cemetery. “Because of this, the car carrying the coffin is just sitting next to the cemetery and they’re not carrying Alexey out.”
1 марта 2024 г. 12:39:32
Internet in the vicinity of the funeral isn’t working properly
“We’ve confirmed it: [we’ve] recorded another case of mobile [Internet] shutdown in Russia — the Internet being shut down on the authorities’ orders,” Internet Protection Society head Mikhail Klimarev wrote on Telegram.
He explained that cell towers are currently operating in UMTS mode, or 3G, which is an outdated form of mobile Internet.
Explaining further, he mentioned that cellular towers are currently operating in UMTS mode:
This is an outdated type of Internet: 3G. It sort of works (probably), but it has a significantly lower capacity for simultaneous connections. As a result, the network is overloaded and the Internet doesn’t function properly.
1 марта 2024 г. 12:43:46
Photo from inside the church during Navalny’s funeral ceremony
1 марта 2024 г. 12:47:49
How the burial will happen
Ivan Zhdanov, the head of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, explained how the burial ceremony will go:
Right now, they’ll bring out the casket. They’ll open the casket lid. His family will say goodbye. Then they’ll close the casket and lower it with a special device. Then everybody will be able to come up to it and throw in handfuls of dirt.
1 марта 2024 г. 12:51:33
Video taken from inside the church during Navalny’s funeral
1 марта 2024 г. 12:58:11
Navalny’s coffin has been closed for the final time and the interment ceremony is beginning.
1 марта 2024 г. 12:58:59
First reported arrest at Navalny’s funeral
1 марта 2024 г. 13:05:26
Navalny’s coffin lowered
Navalny’s coffin is being lowered into the ground to the song “My Way” by Frank Sinatra, reports Navalny associate Ivan Zhdanov.
1 марта 2024 г. 13:09:45
People still coming to cemetery
People wishing to say their farewells to Alexey Navalny are still making their way to Moscow’s Borisovskoye Cemetery.
1 марта 2024 г. 13:12:07
Mourners demand entrance to cemetery
A crowd of mourners has assembled outside Borisovskoye Cemetery and is chanting, “Lyosha [Alexey], we’re with you!”
1 марта 2024 г. 13:24:16
Church was reportedly ‘ordered’ to rush Navalny’s funeral service
Sergey Chapnin, a senior research associate at Fordham University’s Orthodox Christian Studies Center, wrote on Facebook that the rector of the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Soothe My Sorrows, Anatoly Rodionov, was “ordered” to rush Alexey Navalny’s funeral services, allegedly to prevent the services from being a mass public event, said Team Navalny associate Leonid Volkov.
1 марта 2024 г. 13:25:43
Yulia Navalnaya bids farewell to her husband in Instagram post
Lyosha, thank you for 26 years of utter happiness. Yes, even for the last three years of happiness. For the love, for always supporting me, for making me laugh even from prison, and for always thinking about me.
I don’t know how to live without you, but I’ll try to live in a way that will make you happy and proud of me up there. I don’t know if I’ll manage or not, but I’ll try.
I know we’ll meet again one day. There are so many stories I haven’t told you, so many songs I’ve saved in my phone for you — silly ones, funny ones, and, to be honest, awful ones, but they’re songs about us, and I wanted so much to show them to you. I wanted so badly to see you listen to them, laugh, and then hug me.
I love you forever. Rest in peace.
1 марта 2024 г. 13:36:01
Navalny’s coffin has been lowered into his grave
After Navalny’s coffin was lowered, people standing nearby threw handfuls of soil into the grave. The orchestra played the theme music from the Terminator films in a nod to the finale of Terminator 2, when Arnold Schwarzenegger’s T-800 is incinerated in molten steel while gesturing a thumbs-up. As Navalny associate Leonid Volkov commented, Navalny often called Terminator 2 “the greatest film of all time.”
1 марта 2024 г. 13:37:04
Public access to cemetery reported granted
Borisovskoye Cemetery has reportedly started admitting the general public to view Navalny’s grave. The cemetery’s scheduled closing time is less than 25 minutes from now.
1 марта 2024 г. 13:45:30
Mourners leave flowers at a portrait of Alexey Navalny near his grave in Moscow’s Borisovskoye Cemetery.
1 марта 2024 г. 13:47:53
Navalny’s brother, Oleg, bids farewell in an Instagram post:
Rest easy, brother, and don’t worry about a thing 💔
1 марта 2024 г. 13:52:03
Alexey Navalny’s parents at their son’s interment ceremony
1 марта 2024 г. 14:00:35
U.S. Embassy in Russia pays tribute to Alexey Navalny
1 марта 2024 г. 14:03:26
Arrests in Siberia
Seven people were detained in Novosibirsk during a rally in memory of Navalny, which took place at the Monument to the Victims of Political Repression, reports human rights advocacy group OVD-Info.
One eyewitness reported that people were being taken into a police van and then let go after having their documents checked. Police have reportedly been on duty near the monument since the morning.
In Vladivostok, access to a memorial was blocked off by construction workers under the pretext of repair work. Police have also been on duty near the Monument to the Victims of Political Repression in Tomsk.
1 марта 2024 г. 14:07:40
Past closing time at the cemetery
It’s 5 p.m. in Moscow. The Borisovskoye Cemetery officially closes at this time. So far, there have been no reports of police closing the entrance.
1 марта 2024 г. 14:10:46
Plainclothes officers reportedly infiltrate crowd of mourners
The news outlet Mediazona says two readers in the crowd of Navalny’s mourners independently reported that police officers are allowing “strange men in civilian clothes” (apparent provocateurs) to cross behind official barricades after gesturing a “V” symbol with their fingers. Earlier, the same men reportedly shouted that mourners should march on the Kremlin to end their “slavery.”
During past demonstrations, Russian police departments have placed plainclothes officers in crowds who deliberately instigate unruly behavior to trigger more aggressive policing tactics.
1 марта 2024 г. 14:11:23
Mourners toss soil into Navalny’s grave as they say their final goodbyes
1 марта 2024 г. 14:42:48
Police try to disperse crowd as cemetery closes to visitors
The entrance to the Borisovskoye Cemetery has been closed and police have begun trying to move the crowd away from the fence, according to the Telegram channel Mozhem Obyasnit.
Most people who came to bid farewell to Alexey Navalny were reportedly unable to get to his grave.
Mourners are leaving flowers in the snow outside the entrance to the nearest subway station.
1 марта 2024 г. 14:54:16
Makeshift memorial for Navalny outside of the cemetery
1 марта 2024 г. 15:07:16
‘Putin killed him but didn’t break him’
A mourner in a tree holds a sign outside the Borisovskoye Cemetery.
1 марта 2024 г. 15:16:49
Summary of today’s live coverage
- After a rushed church ceremony where only family and close loved ones were admitted, Alexey Navalny was buried at Moscow’s Borisovskoye Cemetery. The music that accompanied his farewell ceremony was Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” and the Terminator film theme music played as his coffin was lowered into the ground.
- The general public was finally admitted to the cemetery shortly before its scheduled closing time.
- Eyewitnesses reported hearing provocateurs in the crowd who urged demonstrators to march on the Kremlin. They were later allowed behind police barricades after making special hand gestures at the officers on duty.
- Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navanalya, posted a memorial video online dedicated to her late husband. She and their children did not come to Russia to attend the funeral for personal safety reasons.
- Public monitoring officials in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug inspected the prison where Navalny died and declared that they found no health or safety violations.
This concludes our live coverage of Alexey Navalny’s funeral and burial services. For further updates, please visit Meduza’s main website.