Leonid Volkov, former head of Navalny’s team, was attacked with a hammer in Lithuania

(CNN) — Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, the former team leader of fellow opposition member Alexei Navalny, was attacked in front of his home in Vilnius, Lithuania, this Tuesday, according to Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh.

“Leonid Volkov was just attacked in front of his house. “Someone broke the car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker started hitting Leonid with a hammer,” Yarmysh said in a social media post.

“Leonid is already at home, the police and an ambulance are heading towards him.”

Ivan Zhdanov, the head of Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, also said Tuesday that Volkov was attacked “near his home” and “his legs were hit with a hammer and his arms were beaten.”

Photos shared by Zhdanov showed Volkov with a swollen face and bloodied legs. Another photo shows broken glass and blood next to a car. Volkov was taken to hospital, Zhdanov said in a social media post.

Lithuanian authorities are investigating Tuesday’s attack, the country’s Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said in a statement. a post on x, Landsbergis described the attack as “shocking”, adding that “the perpetrators will be held accountable for their crimes.”

The attack comes days before Russia’s presidential election, seen as a constitutional box-ticking exercise in which President Vladimir Putin is almost certain to win a fifth term.

Volkov, who is chairman of Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation until 2023, dismissed the February elections as a “circus” and said on social media that they were meant to signal overwhelming public support for Putin.

“It is important to understand what the March ‘elections’ mean for Putin. “They are a propaganda effort to sow disillusionment among voters,” Volkov said.

Navalny, who was the most prominent anti-Putin voice in Russia, died in a Russian prison last month, prompting condemnation from world leaders and allegations by his allies that he was murdered. The Kremlin has denied any involvement in his death.