The Russian government arrested hundreds of people on Friday who had gathered at various tributes across the country for deceased Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
Navalny, a frequent critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was in prison after being convicted on charges of “extremism” and sentenced to 19 years. Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service said that Navalny felt sick after going on a walk, and soon after, lost consciousness and died.
Reuters reported that at least 340 people were arrested in dozens of cities across the country after they lit candles, sang hymns, and visited with each other. OVD-Info, which reports on freedom of assembly in Russia, said that the true number of those arrested could be far higher.
“In each police department there may be more detainees than in the published lists,” OVD-Info said. “We publish only the names of those people…
