Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny 'poisoned'

MOSCOW

Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny is in a coma in a hospital in Siberia after suspected poisoning, his spokeswoman said on Thursday.

Navalny, 44, a vociferous critic of President Vladimir Putin, fell ill on a flight from the Siberian city of Tomsk to Moscow this morning, Kira Yarmysh wrote on Twitter.

She said the plane made an emergency landing in the city of Omsk and Navalny was rushed to a hospital, where he is now on a ventilator in intensive care.

Kremlin spokesman Dimitry Peskov said in a statement that they are aware of the situation.

"All assumptions are only assumptions about whether this was poisoning,” Dimitry Peskov said, adding that the claim should be confirmed by a laboratory.

“ […] we need to wait for the final tests, which will help doctors determine what happened, what caused this situation, the cause of the loss of consciousness,” he said.

“After that, if there is a poisoning, if there are appropriate statements or if other decisions are made by law enforcement agencies, then there will be an investigation".

Navalny’s relatives suspect that something was mixed in the tea he drank this morning, according to Yarmysh.

She added that doctors have said a toxic agent would have been absorbed faster through the hot liquid.

Ivan Zhdanov, one of Navalny's associates, wrote on Twitter that doctors attending the case advise not to move him.

Meanwhile, Alexander Murakhovsky, a top health official of Omsk city said in a statement that Navalny's wife Yulia has arrived at the hospital to be with her husband.

Last year, Navalny, head of Russia’s opposition Progress Party, fell ill while being held at a Moscow detention center.

His team suspected he was poisoned but doctors said it was a severe allergic reaction.

Navalny did not accept the findings and filed a legal complaint over his alleged poisoning.

Reaction

Reaction from across Europe poured in Thursday afternoon on the alleged poisoning.

EU’s High Representative and Vice-President Josep Borrell said he was worried about the suspected poisoning.

Borrell wrote on Twitter: “Worried to hear about Alexei Navalny's suspected poisoning. If confirmed, those responsible must be held to account. Wishing him a swift and full recovery.”

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab also said on Twitter that he was “deeply concerned by reports that Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has been poisoned on a flight to Moscow and is now in a coma in intensive care”.

“My thoughts are with him and his family,” Raab said.

* Ahmet Gurhan Kartal contributed to this story from London