Russians Tell Putin He's a 'Murderer'

Hundreds of Russians attending Alexei Navalny's funeral in Moscow on Friday chanted that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a "murderer," according to video posted to social media.

Navalny, a key leader in the opposition against Putin, died at age 47 in February while serving a 19-year prison sentence for fraud and contempt of court.

His death sparked global backlash as critics accused Putin's administration of being complicit. President Joe Biden said he had "no doubt" that the Kremlin was responsible.

The Russian president's treatment of political adversaries has long raised concerns from human rights watchers. The Kremlin, however, has denied any involvement in Navalny's death.

On Friday, hundreds of people gathered in Moscow to pay tribute to Navalny as he was laid to rest at the Borisovsky Cemetery in the southeastern part of the city.

Footage posted to social media show mourners chanting "Putin is a murderer" outside of the nearby Quench My Sorrows Church. It was a rare sign of protest in a nation that has cracked down on dissent since the Russian president ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The video was first reported by Russian independent news outlet SOTA but spread to X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, where users commented on the chants.

Footage shared by Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, has been viewed more than 250,000 times.

"It's difficult to imagine from the comfort of a free society how much bravery this requires in a society where the regime can easily have you disappeared. 99% of these people wouldn't gain international headlines from their imprisonment like Navalny did," posted X user @andrejnkv.

"Bravery. I just hope they mean he's a murderer of thousands of Ukrainians and Syrians as well as of Navalny," wrote X user Jamie Woodhouse.

"People in Moscow chanting "Putin is a murderer!" at Navalny's funeral. Some will later pay a price: Police will find them, with help from surveillance cameras. Trials will begin. We've seen this countless times," wrote Matthew Luxmoore, a journalist for The Wall Street Journal.

Other videos posted online show people chanting "love is stronger than fear" and "no to war," according to European news outlet NEXTA.

Independent media and human rights group OVD-Info said Russian authorities detained at least one person at the funeral, though details about what led to their arrest remained unclear. Across Russia, at least 21 people planning to attend the funeral were detained, according to OVD-Info.

The Kremlin warned against "unauthorized" protests ahead of Navalny's funeral, according to The Kyiv Post.

Newsweek has reached out to Russia's foreign ministry for comment via email.