Flowers are laid at the Solovetsky Stone in Moscow in memory of Navalny – Kommersant

A spontaneous rally is taking place in the center of Moscow in memory of oppositionist Alexei Navalny, who died today, February 16, in correctional colony No. 3 in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. From 17:00 Muscovites lay flowers at the Solovetsky Stone, a monument to victims of political repression. The rally was not approved, but the police did not interfere with Navalny’s supporters. At the same time, the police allow you to approach the stone only from Lubyansky Passage; they ask “not to linger” and even warn people about slippery icy tiles.

There is a large armful of flowers on the stone, next to it is a photograph of a politician with the caption “Lesha, thank you for the fight.” According to the calculations of a Kommersant correspondent, about a thousand people laid flowers over the last hour. From time to time, police officers approach people standing at the metro exits and ask them to “disperse and not interfere with the passage of other citizens.”

Media reports that several people were detained. In front of a Kommersant correspondent, at 8:32 p.m., a young man was harshly detained and began loudly demanding that the police “keep a distance of two meters” from him. His companions tried to intervene, but the policeman threatened them with an article about assault on a law enforcement officer. At 21:10 people continue to lay flowers.

Earlier, the Moscow prosecutor’s office issued a warning in connection with calls for mass protests. The warning was made against the backdrop of information about the death of Alexei Navalny. The supervisory agency recalled that organizing unauthorized mass actions is an administrative offense under Art. 20.2 Code of Administrative Offences.

“In connection with the spread on the Internet, including on social networks, of calls for an indefinite number of people to take part in a mass action in the center of Moscow, the Moscow prosecutor’s office considers it necessary to warn about the inadmissibility of violating the law,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.

Alexander Chernykh