The German hospital treating Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny for Novichok poisoning says his condition improved enough for him to be released. In a statement released on Wednesday, the Charité hospital here said that after 32 days in care, Navalny's condition "improved sufficiently for him to be discharged from acute inpatient care." The hospital said that Navalny, 44, had been discharged on Tuesday. The hospital says that "based on the patient's progress and current condition, the treating physicians believe that complete recovery is possible," but that it's still too early to gauge the potential long-term effects of his poisoning. Novichok traces found on water bottle in Alexei Navalny's hotel room, his colleagues say. The opposition figure and anti-corruption activist, who is one of President Vladimir Putin's fiercest critics, fell into a coma after becoming ill on a domestic flight from Siberia to Moscow last month. Navalny was transferred to the Charité hospital in the German capital on Aug. 22 after two days of treatment in a Russian hospital. The German government was criticized by Russia after it said there was "unequivocal" evidence that Navalny had been poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok. German authorities said that tests carried out in labs in Germany, France and Sweden confirmed the presence of Novichok in the politician's system. The "weapons-grade" chemical agent was first produced in the Soviet Union but was banned under the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention. Chancellor Angela Merkel went as far as stating the attack on Navalny amounted to "attempted murder." Russia has denied any involvement in the poisoning, initially declining to open an investigation into the incident. On Monday, Navalny demanded that Russian authorities return the clothes he was wearing at the time of the incident, calling it a "very important material evidence." He added that Novichok was found "in and on" his body. In a blog post, he wrote: "I demand that my clothes be carefully packed in a plastic bag and returned to me." In a further statement on Monday, Navalny blasted Russian authorities for not launching a criminal probe into what happened to him. — Euronews
