British Police: Former Russian Spy and His Daughter Poisoned with Nerve Agent

British police announced on Wednesday, March 7, that Sergei Skripal, a former colonel in the Russian military intelligence service, and his daughter were targeted with a nerve agent. Reports indicate that 66-year-old Sergei Skripal and his 33-year-old daughter Yulia were found unconscious on a bench in Salisbury, southern Britain, on Sunday. They are currently in critical condition in the hospital. Mark Rowley, head of counter-terrorism police, stated that they are treating this incident as an attempted murder using a nerve agent. He also confirmed that the two individuals (Sergei Skripal and Yulia) were specifically targeted. However, this counter-terrorism official did not provide details about the nerve agent used. Mark Rowley also added that the first police officer to arrive at the scene has also been hospitalized and is in critical condition. Meanwhile, an unnamed American official told Reuters that British police are trying to determine whether Russia has any connection to the attack on Sergei Skripal. According to Reuters, Sergei Skripal was accused of collaborating with Britain in 2004 and was sentenced to 13 years in prison in a closed trial in 2006. However, in 2010, during a spy swap between the U.S. and Russia, Sergei Skripal was granted asylum in Britain. Initial reports indicated that a passerby became suspicious of the condition of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in a shopping center and contacted the police. Reports state that this passerby found Mr. Skripal and the young woman in a 'semi-conscious' state on a bench. Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, described the incident as 'tragic' in a phone conversation with reporters on Tuesday and expressed readiness to cooperate with the British government on this matter. Mr. Peskov, according to Reuters, stated that he was unaware of the reasons and details of the incident and noted that the British government has not yet contacted Russia about it, but 'Moscow is always ready to cooperate.' The suspicious illness of Mr. Skripal has reminded media personnel of the case of Alexander Litvinenko, who was poisoned by the Russian government according to an official British report. Alexander Litvinenko, a former officer of the Russian Federal Security Service, sought asylum in Britain in 2000 after joining the ranks of critics of Vladimir Putin. Six years later, he died in a London hotel from poisoning caused by radioactive polonium. Using reports from Reuters and Radio Farda.