'Missing' Putin critic Alexei Navalny found after nearly 3 weeks, in prison with 'highest possible level of isolation'
Reuters quoted his spokesperson as saying on Monday. This came weeks after contact with him was lost, just ahead of a presidential vote expected to easily hand Vladimir Putin a fifth term. Navalny's spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said he was located in a prison colony in the town of Kharp, in the Yamalo-Nenets region about 1,900 kilometers (1,200 miles) northeast of Moscow.
The district of Kharp, home to about 5,000 people, is located above the Arctic Circle, AFP reported. Navalny's allies had earlier said his lawyers hadn't him since December 6 and raised the alarm about his fate. In a relief, Yarmysh said on Monday, “Alexei is alright." Navalny is “fine — at least as much as possible after such a long stage" and a lawyer visited him, Yarmysh told The Associated Press.
Navalny, the most prominent foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism. He had been imprisoned in the Vladimir region of central Russia, about 230 kilometers (140 miles) east of Moscow. Navalny's new home, known as "the Polar Wolf" colony, is considered to be one of the toughest prisons in Russia.
Most prisoners there have been convicted of grave crimes. Winters are harsh - and temperatures are due to drop to around minus 28 Celsius there over the next week. About 60 km (40 miles) north of the Arctic Circle, the prison was founded in the 1960s as part of what was once the GULAG system of forced Soviet labour camps, according to the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper.
"The conditions there are harsh, with a special regime in the permafrost," Leonid Volkov, an aide to Navalny, was quoted by Reuters as saying. He said it was difficult to communicate with prisoners held at the remote site. “It is almost impossible
. Read more on livemint.com
