Top prison official says Alexey Navalny has ‘more or less recovered’ after his hunger strike

Alexey Navalny is recovering his health after coming off a 24-day prison hunger strike last month. The opposition politician currently weighs 82 kilograms (180 pounds) and is eating normally, Federal Penitentiary Service Director Alexander Kalashnikov told journalists on May 20. 

“I can say that his health has more or less recovered normally, he went on a hunger strike, but now he has ended it. He weighs 82 [kilograms] already, I think he’s made it. These numbers are real. He’s eating normally [and] has the possibility of communicating with his family,” Kalashnikov said, as quoted by the state news agency TASS. 

Alexey Navalny, who is serving a 2.5 year prison sentence, announced a hunger strike on March 31, demanding access to trusted doctors. He had complained of severe pain in his back and pain and numbness in his legs for several weeks beforehand. Navalny remained on hunger strike until April 23 and his weight dropped to 72 kilograms (159 pounds). Navalny’s supporters launched a public campaign demanding that he be provided with adequate medical care.