The funeral for Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny

A small orchestra near Alexey Navalny's grave played music as people passed by, one by one, to pay their respects to the late opposition leader.

CNN's team had to walk through metal detectors placed at the immediate entrance to the cemetery. Authorities were letting people inside the cemetery in small groups. Everyone was asked to keep moving to avoid blocking the route.

As CNN's team was leaving the site, the line of people who were waiting to enter the cemetery was still massive. 

At least some of the many hundreds of mourners who have converged at the Borisovsky cemetery have been allowed into the burial site to pay their respects to opposition leader Alexey Navalny, a CNN team in Moscow reported.

A well-organized operation is in place, with separate lines for entry and exit to the burial site, the team reported. Police are addressing people politely via loudspeaker and instructing them where to walk.

Video released on one X (formerly Twitter) account of Navalny’s supporters shows people filing past his grave and casting handfuls of earth into it. Some mourners chanted “Thank you for your son” to Lyudmila Navalnaya, Navalny’s mother, who is seen sitting near the grave at the cemetery as people walk through.

The last image we saw of Alexey Navalny alive was him smiling and joking. The final image before he was laid to rest is more sobering. Conforming with Orthodox tradition, the body of the Russian opposition figure is pictured in an open casket. A man who was once politically and physically energetic and fiery, is now still and at peace.

It is a haunting image, with candles illuminating the scene. Navalny’s face appears almost ghostly white amid the piles of carnations that cover his chest. His mother and father are seated beside the coffin, clasping each other's hands, saying goodbye to their son.

It is the culmination of a quest that his mother embarked on 14 days ago when she traveled across Russia's vast wilderness, above the Arctic Circle and to the Siberian penal colony where Navalny met his end, to badger Russian authorities into allowing her to retrieve the body.

In the casket, Navalny is dressed in a shirt, tie and waistcoat – a change from his prison swatches, and a reminder that he was once a prominent politician.

Gaunt and sunken even before his death, Navalny's lifeless face represents the energy that was sucked out by the Kremlin and its remote penal colony.

It is a picture that defines the moment – the extinguishing of political opposition in Russia.

Thousands of mourners gathered to pay their respects as the former opposition figure Alexey Navalny was laid to rest in Moscow today, exactly two weeks after his death was announced by Russia’s prison service.

They were present in and outside the church where the funeral service took place and also walked with the procession to the burial site.

At times, the crowds were heard chanting "we won't forget," "no to war" and "Russia without Putin."

Here are some photos from the day:

Russian state news agencies and broadcasters gave very limited space to the funeral and burial of opposition figure Alexey Navalny.

Despite headlines across the globe, Navalny’s funeral was not featured on state broadcaster Russia 24, while the event was ongoing.

Russia state news agency TASS reported solely on Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov’s warning that “unauthorized gathering will be in violation of the law” – which it listed as the second most read article on its website.

State news agency RIA also reported Peskov’s comments and then marked the moment the opposition leader was laid to rest and the ambassadors attending the event. 

In her first comment on the day of her late husband’s funeral, Yulia Navalnaya has posted a video with the caption:

“I don’t know how to live without you, but I will try to make you up there happy for me and proud of me. I don't know if I can handle this or not, but I will try,” she added. 

Navalny's family: While the opposition figure's parents were present at the funeral, Navalnaya was not. She had said ahead of the funeral that she was concerned police would crack down on mourners.

The message, over video of their years together and ending on a photograph of Navalny surrounded by candles, ended with the words: “Love you forever. Rest in peace.”

At least one person has been arrested at the funeral for Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny, monitoring group OVD-Info reported Friday.

An additional 22 people were detained when they tried to leave their homes to attend the funeral, according to OVD-Info.

CNN could not independently verify that information and Russian authorities did not disclose additional information.

Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny was laid to rest at a Moscow cemetery Friday, exactly two weeks after his death was announced by Russia’s prison service.

Relatives were gathered around the coffin at the Borisovsky cemetery.

"Lyoha, bye! Sleep well, dear," someone shouted from the crowd that had converged on the cemetery. Lyoha is a nickname of Navalny’s.

Others in the crowd were chanting: "Let us in to say goodbye!" 

Several videos showed a large number of people streaming towards the burial site. It’s unclear if they will be allowed into the cemetery.

A queue several hundred meters long formed at the Brateyevsky Bridge.

Alexey Navalny’s coffin has been lowered into the ground to the sound of Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way,’ his team reported during a live transmission of the burial ceremony.

Navalny’s team also said it is struggling with transmission due to communication jamming at the location. CNN has been experiencing similar issues.