New suspicions of poisoning. An investigation has been opened in Germany following health problems raised by a Russian journalist and activist in exile, after a meeting of dissidents in Berlin, police told AFP on Sunday May 21. “An investigation has been opened. Investigations are ongoing”said a spokesman for the Berlin police, confirming information from the daily Die Welt published on Saturday evening.
A few days earlier, the Russian investigative media Agentstvo had published an investigation evoking the health problems encountered by two participants in a meeting of Russian dissidents, on April 29 and 30, around businessman Mikhail Khodorkovsky, an opponent of the Kremlin.
“Sharp pain” and “numbness”
One participant, presented as a journalist who had recently left Russia, experienced unspecified symptoms during the event and said they may have started earlier. The second participant is Natalia Arno, director of the NGO Free Russia Foundation in the United States, where she has lived for ten years. The Russian activist experienced symptoms before and during her stay in Prague (Czech Republic), just after her visit to Berlin. On Facebook, she mentioned “sharp pain” and one “numbness”. Natalia Arno adds that she still has symptoms but feels better.
In recent years, several poison attacks have been carried out abroad and in Russia against opponents of Russian power. Moscow denies any responsibility for its secret services. In the case of opponent Alexeï Navalny, European laboratories have confirmed the use of a Novichok-type poison, developed by the USSR for military purposes.