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| Ex-KGB officer 'poisoned in UK' | Ex-KGB officer 'poisoned in UK' |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Scotland Yard is investigating the alleged poisoning of a Russian former security agent and critic of President Putin living in exile in Britain. | |
| Alexander Litvinenko, said to be a former colonel in the KGB, told the BBC he fell ill after meeting a contact in a restaurant bar in London this month. | |
| A Scotland Yard spokesman said the alleged victim was in a serious but stable condition in hospital. | A Scotland Yard spokesman said the alleged victim was in a serious but stable condition in hospital. |
| The highly-toxic metal thallium was reportedly used in the alleged attack. | |
| Several hours after the meeting, I started to feel sick Alexander Litvinenko, former Russian agent | |
| Mr Litvinenko was in London's Piccadilly, meeting a contact. | |
| It is thought he had been investigating the murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was killed in Moscow last month. | It is thought he had been investigating the murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was killed in Moscow last month. |
| Mr Litvinenko told the BBC the contact had approached him and said they should talk, and they arranged to meet in the restaurant bar. | |
| "He gave me some papers which contained some names on it - perhaps names of those who may have been involved in the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, and several hours after the meeting I started to feel sick." | |
| The chemical thallium attacks the nervous system, lungs, heart, liver, and kidneys. Hair loss, vomiting and diarrhoea are symptoms. | |
| Death can occur after exposure to doses as small as one gram. | |
| Friends of Mr Litvinenko say he is fighting for his life. He has reportedly lost his hair and has difficulty speaking. | |
| Anna Politkovskaya once fled to Austria after receiving threats | Anna Politkovskaya once fled to Austria after receiving threats |
| Ms Politkovskaya, a harsh critic of President Vladimir Putin and Russian policy in Chechnya, was gunned down in her apartment building. | |
| She was an investigative reporter for newspaper Novaya Gazeta and was one of the few Russian journalists to write about alleged human rights abuses in Chechnya. | She was an investigative reporter for newspaper Novaya Gazeta and was one of the few Russian journalists to write about alleged human rights abuses in Chechnya. |
| She had received death threats in the past and suspicions were immediately raised that her death was a contract killing. | She had received death threats in the past and suspicions were immediately raised that her death was a contract killing. |
| Moscow murder | |
| Ms Politkovskaya became ill with food-poisoning on her way to report on the Beslan school siege in 2004, which some believed may have been an attempt on her life. | |
| In 2001, she fled to Vienna, Austria, after receiving e-mail threats claiming a Russian police officer she had accused of committing atrocities against civilians wanted to take his revenge. | In 2001, she fled to Vienna, Austria, after receiving e-mail threats claiming a Russian police officer she had accused of committing atrocities against civilians wanted to take his revenge. |
| Two weeks after the killing US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met relatives and colleagues of Ms Politkovskaya during a visit to Moscow. | Two weeks after the killing US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met relatives and colleagues of Ms Politkovskaya during a visit to Moscow. |
| Ms Rice said the fate of journalists in Russia was "a major concern". | Ms Rice said the fate of journalists in Russia was "a major concern". |