The Russian Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) announced Thursday that prominent opposition leader and Putin critic Alexei Navalny will face arrest upon his return to Russia, state media outlet Tass reported Thursday.
Navalny, who has been in Germany recuperating from an alleged Kremlin-ordered assassination attempt using the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok, earned a spot on Russia’s federal wanted list after surviving the affair and announcing his intent to return to Russia on January 17, according to Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty (RFERL).
The Russian dissident became ill during a flight from Siberia to Moscow on August 2020, falling into a coma which prompted his transport to Germany for treatment, despite objections from the Russian doctors treating him. Navalny has since recovered. German doctors declared there was “unequivocal proof” that his mysterious illness was the result of exposure to Novichok, a Russian nerve agent notorious for its use in political assassinations.
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