Connect with us

Published

on

Yulia Navalnaya Calls On Russian To Fight Against Putin For Freedom—-Yulia Navalnaya said on Monday she would continue the fight of her dead husband Alexei Navalny for a “free Russia” and called on opposition supporters to battle President Vladimir Putin with greater fury than ever.
Navalnaya’s call from abroad for resistance to Putin comes less than a month before a presidential election that is almost certain to hand the Kremlin chief another six-year term.
In a nine-minute video message laced with rage, Navalnaya, 47, said Putin had killed her husband and in doing so had cut away half her heart and robbed their two children of a father.
“I want to live in a free Russia, I want to build a free Russia,” Navalnaya said in the video message entitled, “I will continue the work of Alexei Navalny”.
“I urge you to stand next to me,” she said. “I ask you to share the rage with me.
Rage, anger, hatred towards those who dared to kill our future.”
It was unclear where she was speaking from but she was not in Russia.
Navalnaya was due to attend a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday which was weighing imposing further sanctions on Russia over her husband’s death.
Navalnaya accused the Russian authorities of hiding Navalny’s corpse and of waiting for traces of the Novichok nerve agent to disappear from his body. She gave no evidence but said her team would publish details of who killed her husband.
“Vladimir Putin killed my husband,” Navalnaya said, adding: “By killing Alexei, Putin killed half of me – half of my heart and half of my soul.”
“But I still have the other half, and it tells me that I have no right to give up.
“I will continue the work of Alexei Navalny, continue to fight for our country.”
Navalny, 47, fell unconscious and died suddenly on Friday after a walk at the “Polar Wolf” penal colony where he was serving a three-decade sentence, the prison service said.
The West and Navalny’s supporters say Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death.
The Kremlin has denied involvement in his death and said that Western claims that Putin was responsible for the death were unacceptable.
Putin has made no public comment on Navalny’s death but it has further deepened a gaping schism in relations between Moscow and the West caused by the nearly two-year Ukraine war.
Asked by reporters how Putin reacted to news of the death, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “I have nothing to add.”
Navalny rose to prominence more than a decade ago by documenting and poking fun at what he said was the vast corruption and opulence of the “crooks and thieves” running Putin’s Russia.
He was by far the most charismatic figure in Russia’s scattered opposition – and he gained respect for returning to Russia after a 2020 poisoning in Siberia.
Navalny said a Russian hit squad had smeared Novichok in his underpants, which the Kremlin denied.
Continuing Navalny’s battle, though, is fraught with difficulty – and danger.
Any attempt to lead the opposition from within Russia is almost certain to lead to arrest, but any leader doing so from abroad would be cast by Moscow as a foreign puppet controlled by Western intelligence.
“If (Navalnaya) does this in Russia, she will have a high chance of ending up where her late husband ended up,” Alexei Levinson, head of the sociocultural research at Russian pollster Levada Center, told Reuters.
“If she does this from abroad, the effect will be the same as for all the rest of those who somehow try to influence the processes taking place in Russia from abroad, and in my opinion, do not achieve very much.”
Russian authorities cast Navalny and his supporters as extremists with links to the CIA intelligence agency who were trying to destabilise Russia.
They have outlawed his movement.
Navalnaya’s video appeal was not reported by state media in Russia.
An unidentified source was quoted by some Russian media as saying she could soon be declared a “foreign agent”.
Navalnaya, a graduate of the prestigious Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, always supported her husband in his battles with Russian authorities, attending his many court appearances, standing beside him at rallies, and waiting for release from many prison terms.
But she took a supporting role.
“I know it seems that it is no longer possible (to continue the struggle),” she said in the video clip.
She added: “But we need more. To gather all together in one strong fist and hit this crazed regime with it – Putin, his friends, bandits in uniform, thieves, and murderers who crippled our country.”

0Shares
Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Sports

BREAKING: Harry Maguire 121st Minutes Header Send Manchester United To The UEFA Europa League Semis As Lyon Fumbled 2 Goals Lead

Published

on

Maguire 121st Minutes Header Send Manchester United To The UEFA

BREAKING: Harry Maguire 121st Minutes Header Send Manchester United To The UEFA Europa League Semis As Lyon Fumbled 2 Goals Lead—-Harry Maguire was the hero as Manchester United reached the Europa League semi-finals in astonishingly fashion, beating Lyon 5-4 on an unforgettable night at Old Trafford when both teams blew two-goal leads, advancing 7-6 on aggregate.

Thrashed 4-1 at Newcastle United in the Premier League last time out, Ruben Amorim needed a positive reaction from his men – and it came quickly, Manuel Ugarte sweeping home on 10 minutes to complete a slick team move and notch his first Old Trafford goal.

Back between the sticks after being left out of the trip to Newcastle following his pair of costly mistakes in United’s 2-2 first-leg draw, Andre Onana made a point of celebrating his side’s opener in front of the travelling Lyon fans.

Diogo Dalot’s goal in stoppage time capped a hugely encouraging first half in which United showed great aggression to take the game to Lyon and go in two goals up at the break for the first time since November.

Man Utd remained well on top the first 25 minutes of the second half but, after Alejando Garnacho had missed a chance to make it 3-0 on the night, found themselves facing a nervy finale when Corentin Tolisso pulled a goal back for Lyon.

And when Nicolas Tagliafico bagged an equaliser seven minutes later, things became more than nervy.

Tolisso’s red card shortly before the end of normal time ought to have handed the initiative back to Man Utd, but the hosts appeared shellshocked from throwing away such a healthy-looking advantage.

Lyon came out all guns blazing at the start of extra time to go 4-2 up on the night and lead 6-4 on aggregate, Rayan Cherki putting his side ahead before former Arsenal forward Alexandre Lacazette’s penalty seemed to have put the tie to bed.

But the second half of extra time was to prove to be one of the most dramatic periods of football Old Trafford has witnessed in its long and glorious history.

A Bruno Fernandes penalty gave Man Utd hope, before substitute Kobbie Mainoo struck in the 120th minute to, seemingly, send the tie to penalties.

There was to be no need for the lottery of a shootout, though, as, barely one minute later, Maguire, pushed up front as an emergency centre-forward once again, sparked unadulterated pandemonium by meeting Casemiroqw’s cross to head home a winner which had seemed so far away barely six minutes earlier.

Man Utd’s progression keeps alive their hopes of sealing Champions League qualification as Europa League winners, an achievement which would go some way to mitigating what looks set to be their lowest league finish for 35 years.

0Shares
Continue Reading

Sports

BREAKING: Chelsea Through To UEFA Conference League Semis Despite Shock Home Defeat To Legia Warsaw

Published

on

Chelsea Through To UEFA Conference League Semis

BREAKING: Chelsea Through To UEFA Conference League Semis Despite Shock Home Defeat To Legia Warsaw—-Chelsea reached their first European semi-final under their BlueCo ownership, though you would not have known it by the reaction at the full-time whistle.

Fans booed as confirmation came of this second-leg loss to a side sitting fifth in the Polish Ekstraklasa, despite Enzo Maresca turning to his A-listers for the visit of Legia Warsaw.

Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson took themselves to 15 and 12 games without scoring respectively, and there were further jeers from fans when they felt the football was too tedious.

Chelsea are overwhelming favourites to secure this trophy, but still need to win over their fanbase.

Those arriving at Stamford Bridge thought with such a comfortable lead from the first leg, Enzo Maresca would turn to the Cobham conveyor belt. They supposed wrong. Maresca’s substitutes’ bench was certainly chokka with academy kids, but his actual line-up was of Premier League strength, which was surprising with an important trip to Fulham less than 72 hours away.

Even Palmer started. He had not scored in any competition since January 14. He should have got a goal here after 84 seconds when one-on-one with Vladan Kovacevic but the out-of-form Englishman missed the target entirely.

When Christopher Nkunku was then denied by Kovacevic, Palmer rushed on to the rebound. He tried a diving header, but Legia’s goalkeeper recovered to produce a super save.

Legia’s first attack after 10 minutes led to them scoring as Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen crashed into Tomas Pekhart to concede a penalty. Pekhart took it himself, scoring to make it 1-0 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate despite Jorgensen diving the right way.

Legia should have further reduced the deficit when Ryoya Morishita broke behind unmarked, but he dragged wide when facing down Jorgensen.

After 32 minutes, Jadon Sancho crossed low, Marc Cucurella tapped in, and Chelsea’s three-goal advantage on aggregate was restored. They had not scored in any of their last eight first halves but had now. Cucurella thought he had added another before the break, but VAR correctly disallowed it for an offside in the build-up.

At half-time, Maresca replaced Jackson with Tyrique George, the 19-year-old who went up top. After 50 minutes, another youngster in Josh Acheampong lost possession carelessly in midfield as Legia broke forward, with Jorgensen needed to stop Luquinhas from scoring.

The visitors won a corner from that move, and the out-swinger was volleyed towards goal by Claude Goncalves before being helped in by Steve Kapuadi for 2-1.

Chelsea’s fans were frustrated and as was the case in Sunday’s draw with Ipswich, they let it known by jeering as their team tried to pass their way out of the back. Legia’s away support responded by lighting dozens of flares.

Maresca’s side went in search of a leveller with Noni Madueke and George both denied by goal-line clearances. Jorgensen was relieved when another penalty was not awarded against him after colliding with Luquinhas, and George was frustrated when the offside flag denied him a goal.

0Shares
Continue Reading

Trending

0Shares