Kremlin critic Navalny departs Berlin on Moscow-bound flight

Alexei Navalny surrounded by journalists inside the plane prior to his flight to Moscow (Mstyslav Chernov/AP)

Leading Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has left Germany to return to Russia, where he faces the threat of arrest, after recovering from his poisoning in August with a nerve agent.

Mr Navalny, who announced on Wednesday that he planned to return, said he was “very happy” as he boarded a plane in Berlin bound for Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport on Sunday.