At 3:50, Jake Morphonios tells the story:
This week, one of Vladimir Putin’s main political opponents in Russia, Alexei Navalny, returned to the country and was immediately taken into custody.
Navalny made a name for himself in Russia as an anti-corruption lawyer who repeatedly accused Putin of various crimes – including making himself rich by diverting Russian money into multi-million dollar properties and other fronts. Navalny tried to run for president against Putin, but was barred from doing so.
With over 5 million Youtube subscribers and 2 million Twitter followers, Navalny has vast influence – and many believe that he is receiving support from the Central Intelligence Agency.
Navalny has led many protests over the last several years. He has been jailed many times and has also been the victim of multiple physical assaults. In August of 2020, Navalny was on a flight to Moscow when he suddenly became deathly ill.
The plane made an emergency landing. By the time he arrived at the hospital, he was in a coma. they placed him on a ventilator to keep him alive.
After toxicology tests, scientists in Germany declared that Navalny had been poisoned with Novochok nerve agent – a chemical weapon that had been developed in the Soviet Union.
Eventually, Navalny emerged from his coma and, despite believing that Putin or the Kremlin had ordered the hit on him, he returned to Russia from Germany on January 17th, 2021.
Before landing, his plane was ordered to divert to an alternate airport where Russian security took in him into custody on charges of parole violation. He is being held until at least January 29th when he will face a hearing to determine whether he should return to prison. His wife has since been taken into custody as well.
In response to Navalny’s arrest, tens of thousands of Russians began protesting in the streets throughout the country.
