Kazakhstan arrests Russian woman with ties to Navalny team under international warrant from Moscow

A Russian woman who may have previously worked with the late opposition politician Alexey Navalny’s campaign was arrested at the airport in Almaty, Kazakhstan, last week, Novaya Gazeta Europe reports.

According to the Kazakhstani outlet Orda.kz, the Russian authorities had issued an international arrest warrant against the woman for alleged “property crimes.” Authorities in Kazakhstan are reportedly preparing to extradite her to Russia.

Lawyer Murat Adam told the outlet SOTA that the woman in question is Yulia Yemelyanova, who worked for Navalny’s campaign as an election monitor. Her arrest took place on August 31.

According to Adam, Yemelyanova is being held in a pre-trial detention center. She was in Almaty for a layover en route to another country.

The Russian authorities banned Navalny’s network of campaign offices as “extremist” in 2021.