The assassination of Col. Yuri Budanov, who was convicted of the brutal rape and strangling of the 18-year-old Chechen girl named Elza Kungaeva, has prompted feverish debate in Russia, including no small amount of hate speech and calls to violence from the nationalists. Picking up on these events, the following is translated from the LiveJournal blog of Alexei Navalny:

The Final Battle between Good and Neutrality

The assassinated Colonel Budanov will be buried today in Khimki . The funeral service will start at 11.30 in the Church of Cosmas and Damian, 6 Right Bank, Khimki.

I would personally like to say some things about his assassination:

1) Budanov committed murder and he admitted it. He received the kind of punishment that is normal for our society- he got ten years. You can certainly argue whether it’s a lot or a little, but you cannot say that the court was in any way favourable towards the accused.