Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is apparently being poisoned with something mixed in his tea, his spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh claimed on Thursday, August 20 on social media. The 44-year-old Russian opposition politician is still unconscious and in intensive care in a hospital in Omsk and on an artificial lung ventilator after suffering severe symptoms.
Taking to Twitter, Kira Yarmysh wrote, "Alexei has toxic poisoning." "Alexei is now in intensive care," she wrote.
"We think that Alexei was poisoned with something mixed in his tea. That was the only thing he drank in the morning. Doctors say the toxin was absorbed faster through the hot liquid. Alexei is now unconscious," Yarmysh further added.
What exactly happened?
Alexei Navalny was flying from Siberia to Moscow when his aircraft made an emergency landing so that he could be rushed to hospital after he fell ill.
Before boarding his flight at Tomsk airport, Navalny had drunk tea at a cafe. News agency Interfax quoted the cafe's owners as saying they were checking CCTV cameras to try to establish what had happened.
The head doctor at a hospital in Omsk confirmed that the leader had been admitted there and his condition was serious.
Alexei Navalny, a fierce critic of Russian Prez Vladimir Putin
Alexei Navalny is a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The leader is known for his anti-corruption campaigns against senior officials and outspoken criticism of Putin.
Navalny, a lawyer and anti-corruption activist, has helped release high-impact investigations into what he has said are outrageous examples of official corruption.
He has also suffered physical attacks in the past. His spokeswoman Yarmysh drew a parallel with an incident in 2019, in which Navalny suffered an acute allergic reaction, that one doctor said could have resulted from poisoning with an unknown chemical.
He also suffered chemical burns to his eye in 2017 when attackers threw green dye used as a disinfectant at his face outside his office.
Russia holds regional elections next month and Navalny and his allies have been preparing for them, trying to increase support for candidates that they back.
Navalny - an important voice against corruption
Speaking about his health, American writer Ben Rhodes said, "Navalny is as unsparing and important a voice as there is against corruption - not just in Russia but anywhere in the world."
(With agency inputs)
