VILNIUS: Leonid Volkov, a close ally of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was assaulted outside his home in Vilnius on Tuesday (Mar 12), an incident that sparked an uproar from the Lithuanian government.
Volkov vowed to continue his struggle against President Vladimir Putin in a video posted on Telegram early Wednesday after he was discharged from hospital.
“We will work and we will not give up,” he said, adding that the attack, which left him with a broken arm, was a “characteristic bandit hello” from Putin’s henchmen.
Volkov, 43, is one of Russia’s most prominent opposition figures and was a close confidant of Navalny, working as the late leader’s ex-chief of staff and as chair of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023.
In his post on Wednesday, Volkov said he was struck 15 times on the leg during the attack.
“The leg somehow is OK, it hurts to walk … However, I broke my arm,” Volkov said Wednesday.
“They literally wanted to make a schnitzel out of me,” he added.
Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh earlier said that “someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes” before hitting him with a hammer.
Volkov’s wife, Anna Biryukova, earlier shared photos of her husband’s injuries on social media, including a black eye, a red mark on his forehead and blood on his leg, which had soaked through his jeans.
Lithuanian police spokesperson Ramunas Matonis confirmed to AFP that a Russian citizen was assaulted near his home in the capital Vilnius around 10pm local time.
The suspects have not been identified and more details about the assault are expected on Wednesday morning, he said.
“SHOCKING” ATTACK
The attack comes almost a month after Navalny’s death in an Arctic prison, which Volkov blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin, and days before elections set to extend the Kremlin chief’s stay in power.
The day before he was attacked, Volkov wrote on social media: “Putin killed Navalny. And many others before that.”
Source: CNA
