Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny was in a coma at a Siberian hospital on Thursday after drinking a cup of tea his spokeswoman said she thought was laced with poison.
A fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, Navalny began feeling ill when returning to Moscow from Tomsk in Siberia by airplane on Wednesday morning.
He was in intensive care and within an artificial lung ventilator in an Omsk hospital, his spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said.
"We presume that Alexei was poisoned with something mixed into his tea. It was the only thing he drank in the afternoon. Alexi is currently unconscious," Yarmysh explained.
Physicians gave conflicting information regarding his condition, saying it had stabilised but also that there was a danger to his own life and they were working to rescue him.
There is a long history of Kremlin foes being poisoned or falling ill after suspected poisonings.
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied involvement in those and other incidents, calling them anti-Russian provocations.
Yarmysh didn't say who she believed may have poisoned Navalny but said police had been called to the hospital.
"Physicians are doing everything possible to stabilise his condition," she said. "The poisoning variant is just one of several versions being contemplated. It is not possible now to say what the reason was."
Navalny, a 44-year-old lawyer and anti-corruption activist, has served several stints in prison for organising anti-Kremlin protests and was physically attacked in the street by pro-government activists.
He's helped investigations into what he's stated are outrageous examples of corruption, together with his movies on the topic garnering millions of views.
Russia retains regional elections next month and Navalny and his allies have been working to boost support for candidates that they back.
Passenger Pavel Lebedev submitted an account of what he watched on social networking.
"At the onset of the flight that he moved to the restroom and didn't return. He began feeling very sick. They struggled to bring him round and he was screaming in pain"
Navalny's airplane later made an emergency landing in Omsk. Footage posted on societal media revealed a motionless Navalny being stretchered to an ambulance by medics.
S7, the airline that he had been travelling with, said Navalny had begun feeling very sick soon after take-off and the priest had decided to make an emergency landing in a nearby airport.
He hadn't eaten or drunk anything on board, it stated.
Navalny had a cup of tea at a Tomsk airport cafe prior to boarding his flight, Yarmysh explained.
She drew a parallel with an incident last year where Navalny suffered an acute allergic response that one physician said might have led from poisoning with an unknown chemical.
"Obviously the same was done to him now," Yarmysh said.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said that he was really concerned about the chance Navalny may have been poisoned. "If supported, those responsible must face consequences," he said on Twitter.
A fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, Navalny began feeling ill when returning to Moscow from Tomsk in Siberia by airplane on Wednesday morning.
He was in intensive care and within an artificial lung ventilator in an Omsk hospital, his spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said.
"We presume that Alexei was poisoned with something mixed into his tea. It was the only thing he drank in the afternoon. Alexi is currently unconscious," Yarmysh explained.
Physicians gave conflicting information regarding his condition, saying it had stabilised but also that there was a danger to his own life and they were working to rescue him.
There is a long history of Kremlin foes being poisoned or falling ill after suspected poisonings.
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied involvement in those and other incidents, calling them anti-Russian provocations.
Yarmysh didn't say who she believed may have poisoned Navalny but said police had been called to the hospital.
"Physicians are doing everything possible to stabilise his condition," she said. "The poisoning variant is just one of several versions being contemplated. It is not possible now to say what the reason was."
Navalny, a 44-year-old lawyer and anti-corruption activist, has served several stints in prison for organising anti-Kremlin protests and was physically attacked in the street by pro-government activists.
He's helped investigations into what he's stated are outrageous examples of corruption, together with his movies on the topic garnering millions of views.
Russia retains regional elections next month and Navalny and his allies have been working to boost support for candidates that they back.
Passenger Pavel Lebedev submitted an account of what he watched on social networking.
"At the onset of the flight that he moved to the restroom and didn't return. He began feeling very sick. They struggled to bring him round and he was screaming in pain"
Navalny's airplane later made an emergency landing in Omsk. Footage posted on societal media revealed a motionless Navalny being stretchered to an ambulance by medics.
S7, the airline that he had been travelling with, said Navalny had begun feeling very sick soon after take-off and the priest had decided to make an emergency landing in a nearby airport.
He hadn't eaten or drunk anything on board, it stated.
Navalny had a cup of tea at a Tomsk airport cafe prior to boarding his flight, Yarmysh explained.
She drew a parallel with an incident last year where Navalny suffered an acute allergic response that one physician said might have led from poisoning with an unknown chemical.
"Obviously the same was done to him now," Yarmysh said.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said that he was really concerned about the chance Navalny may have been poisoned. "If supported, those responsible must face consequences," he said on Twitter.