Tests suggest Putin critic Navalny ‘was poisoned’

Tests conducted on Russian dissident Alexei Navalny at a German hospital indicate he was poisoned, but doctors say they do not believe his life to be at immediate risk.

The Charite hospital said the team of doctors who have been examining Mr Navalny since he was flown from Siberia and admitted on Saturday have found the presence of “cholinesterase inhibitors” in his system.

Tests conducted on Russian dissident Alexei Navalny at a German hospital indicate he was poisoned, but doctors say they do not believe his life to be at immediate risk.

The Charite hospital said the team of doctors who have been examining Mr Navalny since he was flown from Siberia and admitted on Saturday have found the presence of “cholinesterase inhibitors” in his system.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had personally offered her country’s assistance in treating Mr Navalny before he was brought to Berlin, said in view of the findings and his “prominent role in the political opposition in Russia, authorities there are now called upon urgently to investigate this crime in detail and in full transparency”.

“Those responsible must be identified and held accountable,” Mrs Merkel said.

Cholinesterase inhibitors are a broad range of substances that are found in several drugs, but also pesticides and nerve agents. However, doctors say the specific substance to which Mr Navalny was exposed is not yet known.

“The patient is still in an induced coma. His health is serious but there is currently no acute danger to his life,” the hospital said in a statement.