That dude has a history of not understanding what is going on. The only thing the passport revocation did was give Russia an additional excuse to tell him to keep him in the airport instead of allowing him to meet people outside the airport while they figured out what to do with him. They could have let him out of the airport or onto an airplane at any time. There is no requirement for travel documents to deport someone from your country.
I just gave the story from his Autobiography
That dude has a history of not understanding what is going on. The only thing the passport revocation did was give Russia an additional excuse to tell him to keep him in the airport instead of allowing him to meet people outside the airport while they figured out what to do with him. They could have let him out of the airport or onto an airplane at any time. There is no requirement for travel documents to deport someone from your country.