In August, Navalny was reportedly poisoned by Russian intelligence on a flight from Tomsk, Russia to Moscow. The poison was believed to have been a Novichok nerve agent and Navalny almost died in the failed assassination attempt.
He was later taken to a hospital in Berlin. His poisoning gained worldwide attention and condemnation.
Putin has denied Russian government involvement in the murder plot, and immediately detained the opposition leader upon his return to Russia after his medical recovery.
These demonstrations — the largest in years — may be more worrying to the Kremlin than prior protests. Writing in Foreign Policy, Vladislav Davidzon explains why Navalny has become such a major challenge to the "hybrid political regime that Putin has constructed."
According to Davidzon, Putin’s regime "has allowed a great deal of space for all sorts of ambiguity and blowing off steam." But, by attempting to embarrass and directly challenge Putin, Navalny is forcing the Kremlin "to make a decision about how to deal with him that it has no interest in making."