Russian opposition leader was poisoned with Novichok agent

By Rebecca Trager2020-09-03T09:10:00

A photo of emergency staff with an isolation pod and an ambulance

Source: © Maja Hitij/Getty Images

German chancellor Angela Merkel says Russia has ‘serious questions’ to answer after tests confirm presence of nerve agent in Alexei Navalny’s bloodstream

The German government has announced that toxicological testing has yielded ‘unequivocal evidence’ that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent.

‘It is shocking information about the attempted murder by poison of one of Russia’s leading opposition members,’ said German chancellor Angela Merkel in a 2 September news conference. ‘There are very serious questions now that only the Russian government can answer, and must answer,’ added Merkel.