An anti-Kremlin activist is being treated in a Berlin hospital for what members of the Pussy Riot band have called poisoning.
The publisher of a Russian online news outlet that criticizes the government, Pyotr Verzilov, reportedly lost his vision, hearing, and ability to walk Tuesday, following a court hearing
Verzilov was treated in a Moscow hospital last week, but was flown to Germany late Saturday on a flight chartered by the Cinema for Peace Foundation, which has long supported his and punk band Pussy Riot’s anti-Kremlin activism.
Verzilov’s wife, band member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, told the German newspaper Bild she believed he was poisoned. Another member of the band, Veronika Nikulshina, told a Russian website it was “definitely poisoning”.
His collapse Tuesday followed a 15-day sentence he served with Nikulshina and two other members of the band for storming the soccer field during the World Cup final in July to highlight Russian police abuses.
…
