Kremlin critic Navalny returns to prison after hunger strike hospital recovery
Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, who was sentenced to 2.5 years in February, has been returned to prison after recovering from a hunger strike at a hospital in a different prison.
The opposition politician had declared a hunger strike in late March in a bid for better medical care in prison after experiencing acute leg and back pain, Russia’s TASS news agency first reported.
The 45-year-old had been serving out a sentence for violating his parole as he recovered in Germany from an assignation attempt.
The parole violation was for a previous 3.5 year suspended sentence the Kremlin critic received in 2014, which turned into a prison term, and many believe was politically motivated.
Navalny stopped his three-week hunger strike in April after receiving medical attention, as doctors warned that he was in danger of a heart attack or kidney failure.
The Russian opposition leader’s hunger strike led to the US warning Moscow of serious repercussions if he dies in April.
Late April also saw German chancellor Angela Merkel voice concerns over Navalny’s health, adding that a Russian troop build-up on the Ukrainian border was creating an “alarmingly tense” situation.
“The German government, together with others, is pressing for him to receive adequate medical treatment,” she told the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe at the time.