Alexei Navalny: Russian files are said to suggest that the Kremlin critic was poisoned

DER SPIEGEL Alexei Navalny: Russian files are said to suggest that the Kremlin critic was poisoned 11 hours • 2 minutes reading time A media report reinforces doubts about the official cause of death of Alexei Navalny: The Kremlin spoke of a natural death until the very end. Internal documents contradict this - and point to a possible poisoning. Alexei Navalny: Russian files are said to suggest that the Kremlin critic was poisoned Leaked files from the Russian authorities reinforce a suspicion that human rights activists had already expressed immediately after the death of Alexei Navalny in February: that the imprisoned Kremlin critic was allegedly deliberately killed. The Russian government spoke of a natural death until the very end, but did not allow an independent autopsy on Navalny's body. The media portal "The Insider" published documents on Sunday from the Russian investigative committee that was supposed to deal with Navalny's death. The symptoms described in it are typical of poisoning, the media report says, citing several doctors. Abdominal pain, cramps and unconsciousness One document states that Navalny lay down on the floor and complained of severe abdominal pain. "He reflexively began to expel the contents of his stomach, had cramps and lost consciousness," "The Insider" quotes from the document, which was intended to serve as justification for why there would be no criminal proceedings in Navalny's death. According to the report, several doctors confirmed that these were typical symptoms of poisoning. "The official cause of death - a cardiac arrhythmia - would in no way explain the symptoms described in the resolution," a doctor is quoted as saying. Official samples were never published According to "The Insider", it is also striking that there is a second version of the same document in which the symptoms described are not mentioned further. Another file is said to prove that samples of his vomit were taken after Navalny's death. However, the results were never officially announced, according to the media report. According to official information, Alexei Navalny died on February 16 in penal colony 3 in northern Siberia. Navalny was considered Putin's most vehement domestic critic. After a poison attack for which he blamed the Kremlin, he traveled to Germany for treatment. In January 2021, Navalny returned to Russia and was immediately arrested.