Call for international investigation into Navalny's death

More than 40 predominantly Western countries are calling for an independent and international investigation into the death of Russian Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny.

"The political leadership and the authorities in Russia must be held accountable," Lotte Knudsen, EU ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, said on Monday on behalf of the group of states at a meeting of the UN Human Rights Council.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was ultimately responsible for Navalny's death in a prison camp, she said.

The countries also called for the immediate release of all other political prisoners in Russia and opponents of the Ukraine war. The statement was supported by the 27 EU members and other countries from Europe, North and Central America and Oceania, including the United States, Canada, Britain and Australia.

According to the EU representation in Geneva, the list had grown to 46 by Monday evening. Further states could still be added, it said.

Navalny, 47, died on February 16 in a penal colony north of the Arctic Circle. According to authorities, Putin's fiercest critic collapsed during a tour of the icy prison yard. Resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful.

His wife and the opposition politician's supporters accuse the power apparatus of murder.

The Russian authorities kept Navalny's body under lock and key for more than a week. It was only after massive public pressure that the body was handed over to his mother. Thousands of people attended the funeral in Moscow on Friday - much to the annoyance of the Russian leadership, which played down Navalny's significance.

In the days that followed, people continued to queue to say goodbye to the politician at his grave.

Meanwhile Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of Navalny, has expressed her gratitude for the sympathy shown by Russians.

Many wondered why Alexei had never given up, Navalnaya wrote on the platform X (formerly Twitter): "For your sake, the wonderful, courageous and honest people who are now standing in an endless line to say goodbye to him."