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Nerve Agent Attack Victim Alexei Navalny Has Woken Up From His Coma, Doctors Say

Last week, the Berlin hospital confirmed that the poison that struck him down had been identified as Novichok.

Vladimir Putin’s nemesis Alexei Navalny has been woken up from his coma and his condition is improving after he was poisoned with a deadly nerve agent last month, his doctors have confirmed. In a statement released Monday, the German hospital where the Russian opposition leader is being treated said Navalny’s health “has improved.” It went on: “The patient’s artificial coma, maintained by medication, was ended. The patient is gradually weaned from mechanical ventilation. He reacts to being spoken to.” However, the hospital warned: “Long-term consequences of severe poisoning cannot be ruled out.” The opposition leader had been fighting for his life, first in a Siberian hospital and then one in Germany, after he was poisoned at an airport while travelling to Moscow in August. Last week, the Berlin hospital confirmed that the poison that struck him down had been identified as Novichok—a deadly Soviet-era nerve agent.