Jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny ends 3-week hunger strike

April 23 (UPI) -- Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny ended his three-week hunger strike on Friday, days after he was transferred to a prison hospital amid reports he was close to death.

Navalny said in a post on Instagram that he was ending his hunger strike on the advice of his doctors and supporters. His doctors said when he was hospitalized that he was on the verge of death after refusing meals in prison.

Navalny, who was poisoned last year and hospitalized for months, started the hunger strike partly in an attempt to receive medical care from his doctor because he'd been losing feeling in his arms and legs.

"I do not withdraw the requirement to admit the necessary doctor to me -- I am losing sensitivity in parts of my arms and legs, and I want to understand what it is and how to treat it, but taking into account the progress and all the circumstances, I am starting to get out of the hunger strike," Navalny said in the Instagram message shared by his team, according to CNN.

Navalny said his hunger strike has led to significant progress for his opposition movement.

Rallies were held across Russia on Wednesday to pressure President Vladimir Putin to release Navalny. More than 14,000 protesters rallied in more than two dozen cities, including 6,000 at the largest event in Moscow. Close to 2,000 demonstrators were arrested.

Authorities had warned against the protests and there was a heavy police presence in most major cities.

Navalny was moved this week from his jail to a prison hospital amid reports of his declining health.

Russia's penitentiary system said earlier this week that Navalny was in "satisfactory" condition and had been examined by a doctor on a daily basis at the high-security prison east of Moscow. Officials added that Navalny was prescribed "vitamin therapy."

Supporters have vowed to continue their opposition activities despite attempts by authorities to ban Navalny's organizations.

U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said last weekend that the U.S. government would respond with consequences for Russia if Navalny dies. Putin and the Russian government have been heavily criticized for their efforts to silence the opposition leader and many believe they were behind Navalny's poisoning last summer.