Speculation swirls over Russian opposition leader's allergic reaction on day of protests

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
(Image credit: VASILY MAXIMOV/AFP/Getty Images)

The prominent Russia opposition leader Alexei Navalny is back in prison to finish his 30-day sentence after being taken to the hospital following a severe allergic reaction on Sunday, the same day Moscow's citizens took to the streets to protest local election authorities for disqualifying independent candidates from the Moscow city council ballots. Navalny was in jail for calling the protests.

Navalny's lawyer, Olga Mikhailova, said he has "gotten better after an intense treatment," but she remains "categorically" opposed to his return to prison while it remains unclear what caused the reaction — Navalny reportedly had no known allergies before Sunday. Mikhailova added that there was no consultation with a toxicologist or any toxicological test results.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.