In Moscow, Russians Mourn Navalny In Quiet Despair

One memorial, crafted around a monument to victims of Soviet-era repression known as the 'Wall of Grief', began accumulating hundreds of flowers (Credit: AFP)

On a snowy overcast Saturday in Moscow, a steady stream of mourners quietly laid flowers at makeshift memorials to opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in prison aged 47.

The Kremlin critic, who spent over three years behind bars, was seen by many Russians as their best hope for change after years of spiralling oppression under President Vladimir Putin.