Summary

  • Alexei Navalny has been buried at a cemetery on the outskirts of Moscow

  • Large crowds of his supporters, risking arrest, chanted "Russia without Putin" and "Russia will be free"

  • There's a heavy police presence in the area - a human rights group says more than 45 people have been detained across the country

  • Navalny's parents attended the funeral but his wife Yulia decided not to travel to Russia amid concerns about repression from the Kremlin

  • In a post on social media, she thanked her husband for "26 years of absolute happiness" and said they would meet again one day

  • The Russian opposition leader died in an Arctic prison, where he had been held on politically-motivated charges

  • Few details have been released on the cause of his death - officials say he collapsed after going for a walk. His wife alleges he was killed on the orders of Vladimir Putin

Live Reporting

Edited by Nathan Williams and Sam Hancock

  1. Thanks for following our coverage

    Navalny funeral: Crowds defiant as they honour political figure in Moscow

    We are now bringing to an end our live coverage of Alexei Navalny's funeral, and the biggest opposition gathering in Russia for three years.

    If you want to read on, you can find our main story here - and associated articles in this link.

    Read more about Navalny, Putin's most vociferous critic, here.

    This page was brought to you by Emily Atkinson, Laura Gozzi, Yaroslav Lukov, Johanna Chisholm, Sam Hancock and Nathan Williams.

  2. How Russians marked Alexei Navalny's funeral

    Dozens of people walk through the snow to get to the Borisovskoye cemetery, where Alexi Navlany was buried todayReuters

    Scores of people lined the streets of Moscow today, all intent on paying their respects to Russian opposition leader Alexi Navalny on the day of his funeral - despite the very real risk of being arrested.

    We're ending our live coverage soon but before then, here's how the day unfolded:

    • Only a small group of the thousands who attended the funeral in south-east Moscow were permitted inside the church that held the service for Navalny. It was a brief ceremony attended mostly by close relatives, including Navalny's parents
    • His wife Yulia, who lives abroad, decided not to travel to Russia amid concerns about whether she may be detained by authorities. On social media, she thanked her husband for 26 years of happiness
    • Russian authorities exerted tight control on mourners, with metal barriers blocking access to the entrance of the church. A human rights monitoring group said 45 people have been detained across Russia
    • Some supporters could be heard chanting “no to war” and “Russia without Putin”
    • With no coverage of the funeral on Russian TV, Navalny’s team - which operates in exile - broadcast their own on YouTube, frequently becoming tearful while watching from afar
    • Russian President Vladimir Putin has maintained his silence on this issue, despite being blamed by Navalny's wife and some Western leaders - including US President Joe Biden - for Navlany's death
    • "The Kremlin doesn't have anything to say to Navalny's family on the day of his funeral" was Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov's message this morning

  3. Navalny's legacy is uniting opposition parties, friend says

    Christo Grozev gives a press conferenceReuters

    Christo Grozev, a friend of Navalny's, investigated the opposition leader's near-fatal poisoning back in 2020

    The legacy of Alexei Navalny's death will pave a way for the opposition in Russia to "consolidate and unite" under one banner, says a close friend of the activist.

    Speaking on the BBC World Service's Newshour programme, investigative journalist Christo Grozev said his friend's legacy was hauntingly laid out in a now infamous scene from the Navalny documentary where he was asked what would happen if he were to die.

    "He literally was asked the question: 'What would you like to tell people in Russia in the event you are killed?' and he laughed," says Grozev.

    Continuing to paraphrase Navalny's words, he goes on to say: "If I am killed that is just a message to you that we are strong and that they are afraid of us and that you should use that strength and by doing nothing you're just enabling the evil regime."

    The investigative journalist then speculated that "with this terrible tragedy we may see an upturn in that [opposition] consolidation".

    "So that is at least giving us some hope."

  4. More than 45 detained across Russia - human rights group

    Crowds of people gather near police vans after Navalny's funeralEPA

    Crowds of people are still on the streets of south-eastern Moscow after Navalny's funeral and burial

    We've an update now on today's arrest figures. More than 45 people have been detained across Russia, according to the country's human rights monitoring group OVD-Info.

    It says 18 people were held in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, including one local MP.

    Another 10 people were detained in the city of Ekaterinburg, in the Urals, and 10 more in the western Voronezh region, OVD-Info says.

    In the capital Moscow, six people - including an opposition politician - were detained, it reports, adding that further arrests have been made in several cities (but provides no numbers).

    OVD-Info is normally a reliable and often the only source of information when it comes to public protests in Russia. The Russian authorities have not publicly commented on the issue.

  5. Navalny's funeral biggest opposition gathering for three years

    Vitaliy Shevchenko
    Russia editor, BBC Monitoring

    People walk towards Borisovsky cemetery in Moscow for Alexei Navalny's funeralReuters

    Today saw the largest opposition gathering in Russia since Alexei Navalny’s jailing in January 2021.

    The fact that it was allowed to happen suggests the Kremlin may have been worried about the optics of not allowing the late opposition leader’s family to bury him, or of arresting mourners at a church or cemetery.

    It's also possible that the authorities in Moscow didn't see the ceremony as enough of a threat.

    They'll be hoping now that the mourners quietly dissipate and - with no organised opposition to speak of left in Russia - the Kremlin will hope it won't have to worry about Navalny’s cause again.

  6. 'It is not scary when we are together'

    Let's bring you some more voices of mourners at Navalny's funeral. As in our previous post, we are keeping them anonymous.

    One said they feel comfortable knowing they are in the company of like-minded people, that "it is not scary when we are together".

    "We came just to honour the memory of the person who was not scared of anything," they added.

    Another added that it was "important to see people who agree that what happened is terrible".

    "[Navalny] is a person who once made me interested in politics... he inspired many people," said another.

  7. Watch: Terminator 2 theme plays at Navalny's burial

    Terminator 2 song plays at Navalny's burial

    The Terminator 2 theme song was played after Navalny's coffin was lowered into the ground.

    "[Navalny] thought Terminator 2 was the best film in the whole world," his spokeswoman Kira Yarmish said.

  8. Navalny 'a shining example of what Russia could be', US embassy says

    The French and American ambassadors to Russia stand with red roses near the Soothe My Sorrows church before a funeral service and a farewell ceremony for Russian opposition politician Alexei NavalnyReuters

    Foreign diplomats, including French ambassador to Russia Pierre Levy and the US ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy, are pictured waiting outside the church ahead of Navalny's funeral

    Shortly after the body of Alexei Navalny had been laid to rest in a cemetery outside Moscow, the US embassy in Russia released a statement memorialising the deceased opposition leader as "a shining example of what Russia could & should be".

    "His death is a tragic reminder of the lengths the Kremlin will go to silence its critics. Our hearts go out to his family, friends, supporters, & all those he has inspired to work for a brighter future," the embassy said in a post shared on X.

    Lynne Tracy, the US ambassador to Russia, was seen earlier in the day laying flowers at a memorial for the late opposition leader, alongside her Western counterparts from Germany and France.

  9. In pictures: Large crowds in Moscow pay tribute to Navalny

    Thousands of people have attended Alexei Navalny's church funeral service, and later saw his coffin being lowered into the ground at a cemetery in south-eastern Moscow.

    They gathered despite significant risks of repression from the authorities.

    Here are some of the photos from today's ceremony in the Russian capital.

    People walk towards Moscow's Borisovskoye cemetery for Alexei Navalny's funeralReuters

    Mourners defiantly chanted "Navalny!" and "Thank you! as they walked to Borisovkoye cemetery for Navalny's burial. Many also shouted "Putin is a killer!" in a reference to Russia's president

    Funeral service workers carry out Alexei Navalny's coffin after his church funeral serviceEPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

    Earlier, many clapped as Navalny's coffin was brought out after a church funeral service

    Flowers along Alexei Navalny's funeral route in MoscowReuters

    The mile-long funeral route from the church to the cemetery was covered in flowers

    Alexey Navalny's parents, Anatoliy (centre) and Lyudmila (right), during his funeral serviceReuters

    Navalny's parents, Anatoliy (centre) and Lyudmila (right), were among the mourners

    Russian police gather near Borisovsky cemetery in MoscowReuters

    There was a heavy police presence on the site - but no reports of any disturbances so far

  10. Detentions reported during Navalny funeral
    Breaking

    Russian police detain a man near Borisovskoye cemetery in MoscowReuters

    At least two people - including an opposition politician - have been detained during and after Navalny's funeral in Moscow, media reports say.

    They say several people were also held in the cites of Ekaterinburg and Novosibirsk in central Russia.

    The Russian authorities have not publicly commented on the issue.

  11. German chancellor praises 'courageous Russians'

    Paying tributes to Navalny, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says the opposition leader "paid with his life for his fight for democracy and freedom.

    "After his death, courageous Russians are carrying on his legacy: many of them were at the funeral today and took a big risk - for freedom," he says on X (formerly Twitter).

  12. 'Now is not the time to be a coward'

    A huge crowd of people in the snow. A chapel sits on a hill nearbyReuters

    The crowd at Borisovskoye cemetery today

    Some mourners who attended Navalny's funeral have spoken about their reasons for taking the risk to be there. We've kept them anonymous.

    One said Navalny's death was a "killing of a brave, of an honest man, who wanted a great future for his country" and they felt compelled to honour him.

    Another said that this was "not the time to be a coward in Russia", and the risk of arrest was due to the Russian government's fear of Navalny's supporters.

    "We are only people with the flowers in grief and that's all. They are afraid of us," they said.

  13. Navalny's brother Oleg pays tribute to him

    Navalny's brother Oleg, whose whereabouts are currently unknown, has posted a tribute on Instagram.

    Under photos of the two of them, he writes:

    Sleep easy, brother, and don't worry about a thing."

  14. Huge personal risk for mourners showing up today

    Olga Ivshina
    BBC Russian Service

    A crowd of people, some holding roses, walk towards the Borisovskoye cemetery where Alexei Navalny was buriedReuters

    Thousands of people came today to pay their respects to Alexei Navalny - and they did so despite significant personal risks that may follow.

    At least 400 people were detained just for laying flowers on the day of his death, 16 February. And we know for a fact that at least some of them later lost their jobs with a clear message that this was because of their political position.

    We don't yet know what may follow for people who have come to the church and cemetery today, but mourners definitely needed some bravery to show up.

    There's been a significant police presence today, with dozens of security personnel in uniform. But from my eight years' experience covering events like this, there could well be a few dozen more (at least) plain clothes officers closely monitoring the situation and taking pictures of those present.

    Russian courts have labelled both Navalny and his organisation extremists, so any association with them can lead to serious trouble.

  15. Cemetery where Navalny buried about to close

    Borisovskoye cemetery - where Alexei Navalny has been buried - is due to close very soon, at 17:00 local time (14:00 GMT).

    Large crowds have been seen there paying their last respects to the Russian opposition leader, risking the possibility of arrest in the process.

    But it's unclear what happens next - will they be forced to leave or allowed to stay on?

  16. Navalny's wife thanks him for '26 years of absolute happiness'

    Navalny embraces his spouse YuliaGetty Images

    Navalny's wife Yulia and two children currently live abroad, and have decided not to travel to Russia reportedly amid concerns of possible repression from the Kremlin.

    In a poignant tribute to her husband on Instagram, Yulia thanked him for "26 years of absolute happiness".

    "I don't know how to live without you, but I will try to do it so you - up there - would be happy and proud of me.

    "We will definitely meet one day," Yulia added.

    She also posted footage of some of the most memorable moments of the couple's lives.

  17. Surreal scenes at Navalny's funeral

    Laura Gozzi
    Europe reporter

    We're yet to establish exactly how many people attended Alexei Navalny's funeral today - but it's definitely in the thousands.

    There was a heavy police presence, but hours after the proceedings started there were no reports of any arrests.

    Perhaps the feeling there was strength in numbers as people chanted "no to war", "Russia without Putin" and "Russia will be free".

    Many have routinely been arrested simply for carrying signs bearing these slogans.

    Today, emboldened by the occasion, a crowd of thousands chanted them.

    For those of us used to watching Russia closely, it felt surreal.

  18. Sinatra followed by... The Terminator 2

    We're now hearing that The Terminator 2 theme song was played out after Navalny's coffin was lowered into the ground.

    "[Navalny] thought The Terminator 2 was the best film in the whole world," his spokeswoman Kira Yarmish said.

  19. Navalny casket lowered into the ground

    The lid is now closed on Navalny's casket before being lowered into the ground.

    Playing in the background at Borisovskoye Cemetery is Frank Sinatra's My Way.

  20. Navalny burial begins
    Breaking

    Alexei Navalny's burial has now begun.

    The live stream from Borisovskoye cemetery shows mourners paying their last tributes at the opposition leader's open casket.