SUSPICIOUS

Probes Launched Into Potential Poisonings of Russians Living Overseas

All of the women who suddenly fell ill have been critical of Putin and the Kremlin.

Authorities in the U.S. and Germany are investigating the possible poisoning of two Russian reporters and a Russian activist who have criticized the war in Ukraine and Vladimir Putin and now live abroad, according to a report. The three women described suddenly falling ill with symptoms of fatigue, headaches, and abdominal pain, according to The Wall Street Journal. The FBI last month interviewed Natalia Arno—activist and founder of the Free Russia Foundation who now lives in Virginia—after she became ill in May. Prosecutors in Berlin separately opened an attempted murder investigation after they received a complaint from journalist Elena Kostyuchenko, who says she suddenly fell ill while on a train in Germany last year. Kostyuchenko worked for Novaya Gazeta until it was shut down last year and now says she can only work a few hours at a time due to fatigue. Radio journalist Irina Babloyan also suddenly fell ill in Tbilisi, Georgia, last year and moved to Germany for treatment. Prosecutors say they spoke with her but decided to close the inquiry after finding she was not poisoned in Germany.