Alexei Navalny's death "a matter of days," spokesperson says
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Alexei Navalny. Photo: Sefa Karacan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny faces possible kidney failure as he continues his multi-week hunger strike, a medical trade union told Reuters on Saturday.
What they're saying: "His condition is indeed critical ... His potassium is high and he has other high readings which indicate that his kidneys may soon fail. This would lead to severe pathology and cardiac arrest may occur," Alexandra Zakharova, a representative for the Doctors Alliance trade union, told Reuters.
- Zakharova said the union — which the Russian government also considers an opposition group — looked at tests obtained through Navalny's lawyers, adding that Navalny has not been examined by the union.
The latest: "People usually avoid the word 'dying'. But now Alexey is dying. In his condition, it is a matter of days," tweeted the opposition leader's press secretary Kira Yarmysh on Saturday.
- "Allow a doctor to see my dad," Navalny's daughter, 20-year-old Stanford University student Darya Navalnaya, wrote on Twitter.
- Navalny's team on Sunday urged people to take to the streets on Wednesday, per the Washington Post, saying he is being killed "in front of us all.”
What's happening: Navalny announced he was going on hunger strike in late March.
- He said Friday that prison authorities "threatened to put him in a straitjacket to force-feed him unless he abandons his hunger strike because of his seriously deteriorating health," Reuters writes.
- Prison authorities said they offered Navalny treatment, but he refused, arguing he should be seen by a doctor of his choice. That request was denied.
Catch up quick: Navalny was sentenced to more than two years in prison this February for violating his parole while recovering from a nerve agent poisoning in Germany.
Editor's note: This post was updated with new statement's from Navalny's daughter and his press secretary.
