Alexey Navalny timeline: From poisoning to prison to death

Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has died in the Arctic penal colony where he was serving a 19-year sentence, prison authorities say.

Navalny lost consciousness after a walk on Friday and could not be revived by medics, the prison service said.

The 47-year-old was Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic and spent much of his time in recent years either in prison or recovering from attacks, including a near-deadly poisoning that grabbed the world’s attention and became emblematic of the risks faces by the Kremlin’s opponents.

Here’s a look at some of the key moments in his life since that poisoning.

August 20, 2020 – Navalny is hospitalised in the Siberian city of Omsk after falling ill and losing consciousness while on a domestic flight over Siberia. Navalny’s spokesperson says he was poisoned, perhaps by a cup of tea he drank prior to takeoff from Tomsk’s Bogashevo airport, but Russian doctors treating him say they found “no trace” in his blood or urine.

August 22, 2020 – Navalny is airlifted to Charite hospital in Germany’s capital, Berlin, for treatment. The Russian medical team treating him had initially refused his transport before later releasing him. German doctors say their tests indicate Navalny was poisoned.

September 2, 2020 – German officials say there is “unequivocal proof” Navalny was poisoned with a Soviet-era Novichok nerve agent. Chancellor Angela Merkel says Navalny is a victim of attempted murder, adding there are “serious questions that only the Russian government can and must answer”. International calls for an investigation into the incident mount.

September 3, 2020 – The Kremlin rejects claims, including those made by Navalny’s team, that Moscow was behind the poisoning.

September 4, 2020 – A Russian toxicologist says Navalny’s health could have deteriorated because of dieting, stress or fatigue, insisting no poison had been found in his body.