Blowing up Russia: The Book that Got Litvinenko Murdered

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Yury Fedotov, Ambassador of the Russian Federation, pointed out that when the Russian Federation ratified the European Convention on Extradition it entered a declaration [81] concerning Article 6 in these terms: "The Russian Federation declares that in accordance with Article 61 (part 1) of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, a citizen of the Russian Federation may not be extradited to another state." [82] BBC programme [ edit ] Rebellion: The Litvinenko Case (distributed as Poisoned by Polonium) is a 2007 Russian documentary film about Litvinenko's activities and death. [190] According to a British investigation, Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned on November 1, 2006. He died three weeks later in a British hospital. An autopsy discovered traces of the rare radioactive isotope polonium-210 in his body. Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kowtun Image: picture alliance/dpa The men from Moscow were carrying what Kovtun confessed to a friend was “a very expensive poison”. About its properties he knew little. The poison was polonium-210, a rare radioactive isotope, tiny, invisible, undetectable. Ingested, it was fatal. The polonium had originated at a nuclear reactor in the Urals and a production line in the Russian town of Sarov. A secret FSB laboratory, the agency’s “research institute”, then converted it into a dinkily portable weapon. Unlike some other source of radiation, polonium-210 emits very few gamma radiations, but large amounts of alpha particles which are relatively difficult to detect with common radiation detectors such as Geiger counters. This explained why tests conducted by doctors and Scotland Yard at the hospital with Geiger counters were negative. Both gamma rays and alpha particles are classified as ionizing radiation, which can cause radiation damage. An alpha-emitting substance can cause significant damage only if ingested or inhaled, acting on living cells like a short-range weapon. [28] Hours before his death, Litvinenko was tested for alpha-emitters using special equipment. [28]

Business booming at Polonium restaurant in English city, manager says". International Herald Tribune. 1 December 2006 . Retrieved 6 June 2008. Nathwani, Amit C (2016). "Polonium-210 poisoning: a first-hand account". The Lancet. 388 (10049): 1075–1080. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)00144-6. PMID 27461439. S2CID 892003. Archived from the original on 4 July 2023 . Retrieved 6 August 2016. June 1994: A remote-controlled bomb detonated aiming at chauffeured Mercedes 600 with oligarch Boris Berezovsky and his bodyguard in the rear seat. The driver was decapitated but Berezovsky managed to survive with severe burns. Litvinenko, then with the organized-crime unit of the FSB, was an investigating officer of the assassination attempt. The case was never solved, but it was at this point that Litvinenko befriended Berezovsky. In September 2021, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) found that Russia was responsible for Litvinenko's killing (a violation of Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, to which Russia has been a party since 1998). [87] [88] The Court's findings were consistent with those of the UK inquiry; it ruled that it was " beyond reasonable doubt that the assassination had been carried out by" Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun; that there was "prima facie evidence of state involvement" and that there was a "strong" case that the two assassins were acting as agents of the Russian State; and that Russia had failed to investigate the murder or to identify and punish those responsible. [89] [1] [8] The Court drew an adverse inference from Russia's refusal to disclose any documents from its investigation. [1] The Court noted that the "planned and complex operation involving the procurement of a rare deadly poison, the travel arrangements for the pair, and repeated and sustained attempts to administer the poison indicated that Mr Litvinenko had been the target of the operation." [8] Investigators at Scotland Yard concluded that he was poisoned by a longtime acquaintance by the name of Andrey Lugovoy, working together with Russian businessman and ex-KGB agent Dmitry Kovtun. The assassination took place during a meeting in a London hotel bar, where Litvinenko had polonium allegedly mixed into his tea. The British intelligence services said the poisoning had all the signs of a "state-sponsored assassination."In 2015, Kovtun refused to testify in a London court via video link, arguing that because he was part of the original Russian investigation, he first needed permission from Russian investigators. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation confirmed that Kovtun was subject to secrecy, and that he did not request that this secrecy be lifted.The Russian prosecutor's office and investigative committee have provided no further details from their investigations. According to Andrey Lugovoy, "everything was done to find out the truth." Russian suspecton 'Magnitsky lists' Upon his arrival in London, he continued to support the Russian oligarch in exile, Boris Berezovsky, in his media campaign against the Russian government. [13] Minutes aired a segment entitled "Who Killed Alexander Litvinenko?" on 7 January 2007. A transcript is available online. [185] The Constitution of Russia forbids extradition of Russian citizens to foreign countries (Article 61), so the request can not be fulfilled. [166] Lugovoy blamed the British secret service for the crime, together with the Russian mafia and Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, who passed away in England in 2013. The same conclusion was reached by the Russian prosecutor's office.

Update to investigation of Polonium 210 incident". Health Protection Agency (H.P.A.). Archived from the original on 8 November 2011 . Retrieved 29 October 2011. Spy Death: Italian Cleared By Medics". Sky News. 1 December 2006. Archived from the original on 13 August 2009 . Retrieved 9 September 2009. thought to have ingested or inhaled polonium-210 The Economist (11 December 2006). "A Remarkable Plot". Economist. Archived from the original on 13 December 2006 . Retrieved 11 December 2006. Gonzáles, Abel J (March 1999). "Timely action" (PDF). International Atomic Energy Agency. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 March 2009 . Retrieved 8 December 2006. Russia: Lebed Dies in Helicopter Crash". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 9 April 2008. Archived from the original on 2022-03-26 . Retrieved 2022-04-03.

Cobain, Ian (24 November 2006). "Poisoned former KGB man dies in hospital". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 19 August 2023 . Retrieved 24 November 2006. Scotland Yard initially investigated claims that Litvinenko was poisoned with thallium. It was reported that early tests appeared to confirm the presence of the poison. [36] [37] Among the distinctive effects of thallium poisoning are hair loss and damage to peripheral nerves, [38] and a photograph of Litvinenko in hospital, released to the media on his behalf, [39] indeed showed his hair to have fallen out. Litvinenko attributed his initial survival to his cardiovascular fitness and swift medical treatment. It was later suggested a radioactive isotope of thallium might have been used to poison Litvinenko. [40] Amit Nathwani, one of Litvinenko's physicians, said "His symptoms are slightly odd for thallium poisoning, and the chemical levels of thallium we were able to detect are not the kind of levels you'd see in toxicity." [41] Litvinenko's condition deteriorated, and he was moved into intensive care on 20 November. Hours before his death, three unidentified circular-shaped objects were found in his stomach via an X-ray scan. [42] It is thought these objects were almost certainly shadows caused by the presence of Prussian blue, the treatment he had been given for thallium poisoning. [38] [43] Death and last statement [ edit ] Grave of Alexander Litvinenko at Highgate Cemetery

Lugovoi and Kovtun, however, were rubbish assassins. The quality of Moscow’s hired killers had slipped since the glory days of the KGB. Their first attempt, in a Grosvenor Street boardroom, had not worked. They had lured Litvinenko to a business meeting, where – the radiation stain later showed – they had tipped polonium into his cup or glass. But Litvinenko did not touch his drink. As of 1 November 2006, he was stubbornly alive. Lugovoi and Kovtun were rubbish assassins. The quality of Moscow’s hired killers had slipped since the KGB's glory days To start a nuclear war would not be as simple as pushing the button, as the decision involves people and technology, and not everybody is as crazy as Putin. But a wider war that spreads into the Baltic countries would in Putin’s eyes reverse the “catastrophe” of the Soviet Union’s collapse and would be, for him, the best way to be remembered.’

From among the ranks to battling outside

a b c d e Siddique, Haroon; Roth, Andrew (21 September 2021). "Russia responsible for Alexander Litvinenko death, European court rules". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022 . Retrieved 21 September 2021.