Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny has been located at a penal colony in Siberia, his team said Monday, two weeks after they lost contact with him.
“We have located Alexey,” stated Kira Yarmysh, the spokesperson, on X, formerly Twitter. She announced, “He is currently situated in IK-3 in the settlement of Kharp in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District.”
Yarmysh mentioned that Navalny’s lawyer had visited him earlier on Monday and assured that the imprisoned activist was “doing well.”
Before losing contact with Navalny on December 11, he was held in a penal colony approximately 150 miles east of Moscow. Expressing concern over his absence from two scheduled court hearings, his team emphasized that Navalny had “never been hidden for so long.” They highlighted his poor health before disappearing, citing being “deprived of food” and being “kept in a punishment cell without ventilation.”
Navalny’s disappearance, coinciding with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement of re-election in March 2024, raised worries about his well-being and safety. Kremlin critic Alexey
Ivan Zhdanov, the director of Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation, described the IK-3 penal colony in Kharp, where Navalny is now held (known as “Polar Wolf”), as “one of the northernmost and most remote colonies.” Zhdanov noted the harsh conditions and the special regime in the permafrost zone, making it challenging to access with no letter delivery systems.
Zhdanov also mentioned that Navalny’s lawyer initially faced restrictions in entering the penal colony, suggesting that the facility may have been prepared for Navalny’s arrival in advance. He pointed out that the head of the Federal Penitentiary Service, Arkady Gostev, had been present in April, possibly indicating the decision to transfer Alexey to this location was made then.