The ECHR condemned Russia for the illegal detention and inhumane treatment of Alexei Navalny, who died in 2024 in prison.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) condemned Russia for the inhumane treatment and illegal detention of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who was arrested upon his return to Russia in January 2021. Navalny, an anti-corruption activist, was arrested based on a suspended sentence from 2014, previously denounced by the ECHR for violating the right to a fair trial.

The judges emphasized that during his detention, he was subjected to ill-treatment that affected his health and dignity. Navalny died in February 2024 under suspicious circumstances in a penal colony.

The ECHR found violations of the right to life, liberty, and the prohibition of degrading treatment, obliging Russia to pay 26,000 euros in moral damages, although Moscow no longer recognizes ECHR decisions. Russia was expelled from the Council of Europe in 2022, but remains responsible for previous human rights violations.