Seems like there remain the Ukraine some old school Russian style operatives.
From AP:
Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko checked out of a Vienna clinic Sunday where he was diagnosed with dioxin poisoning, saying he was glad to alive, as Ukrainian prosecutors reopened a criminal investigation into allegations someone tried to kill him with the toxic chemical.While we may complain about our politics here at home, it's good to note that our politics of lies and deception is a lot kinder and gentler than attempted murder of opposition leaders. Character assaination is, I guess, not quite the same kind of crime.
A spokesman for the prosecutor general's office said the investigation - which had been closed last month for lack of evidence - was reopened after doctors in Vienna confirmed that the opposition leader had been poisoned by dioxin, possibly slipped into his food.
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Yushchenko has accused Ukrainian authorities of poisoning him, but told reporters he does not want to talk further about the allegation until after the runoff vote has been rerun on Dec. 26.
"I don't want this factor to influence the election in some way - either as a plus or a minus," he said in Russian. "This question will require a great deal of time and serious investigation. Let us do it after the election - today is not the moment."
Yushchenko thanked the medical staff who determined he had been poisoned, which caused him extreme internal pain and left his once-handsome face pocked and gray.
Doctors said had the dose of dioxin been greater, it could have been fatal but that he is now getting better and is capable of returning to the campaign trail.
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Yushchenko fell ill Sept. 5 and has been treated at the Vienna clinic twice before, but it was tests performed since he checked in Friday night that provided conclusive evidence of the poisoning, said hospital director Dr. Michael Zimpfer.
A lab in Amsterdam, using a newly developed test, found his blood contained more than 1,000 times the normal amount of dioxin, Zimpfer said.
Tests showed the toxin was taken orally, and was likely slipped into something that Yushchenko ate or drank, Zimpfer said, suggesting that whoever was responsible may have thought it untraceable.
"Until recently, there has been no (blood) testing available," Zimpfer said. "This may be one of the reasons that this kind of poisoning, if it was a criminal act, was chosen."
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The massive quantities of it found in Yushchenko's system caused chloracne, a type of adult acne caused by exposure to toxic chemicals. The condition is treatable, but can take two to three years to heal.
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Among other things, Dioxin is known to cause cancer and Dr. Nikolai Korpan, the physician who has been treating Yushchenko, said it is too early to tell what other problems might develop.
For now, he said, "we can confirm that his health is very good at this moment and he can do his job," Korpan said.
