Litvinenko murder still a mystery
Published 23 November, 2008, 10:35
The inquest into the death of former Russian secret services officer Alexander Litvinenko, who was poisoned in London exactly two years ago, still remains open and adjourned.
The house, where Alexander Litvinenko used to live, is now uninhabited. It has been vacant for two years due to radioactive contamination. Recently the local authorities returned the keys to the property to Litvinenko’s wife Marina, but it isn’t clear if she plans to move back in with her son. Scientists from the Health Protection Agency have now advised that the property has been adequately decontaminated and the restrictions can be withdrawn.
Meanwhile, another book about the Litvinenko poisoning, called “Polonium in London” has been recently published. The author Doctor Zhores Medvedev, a historian and radiobiologist, believes that his book is the most accurate of the four books about the case currently available. He is trying to shed some light on what actually happened.
“Polonium has a very rare quality – it actually evaporates due to the very heavy Alpha particles it emits, so polonium would disappear,” he told RT. “The fact that they found polonium in so many places, and sometimes in large quantities, as they claim seems to be not actually valid.”
Meanwhile, the British authorities refuse to make any information public until they get the prime suspect Andrei Lugovoy, a Russian citizen, extradited. With so little information from official sources, the case remains a mystery to the general public.
“I think they are keeping this as a secret because there is something in the post mortem that contradicts official descriptions of the case which been have widely distributed in books and television programs,” said Zhores Medvedev.
Unlike polonium, which naturally decays and is no longer found anywhere near where Alexander Litvinenko went in London, the question of what really happened is still up fresh in people’s minds.
Related links
Polonium Cluedo – two years on
Main suspect in Litvinenko poisoning ready to help investigation
Court rules Russian tax claims against British Council invalid
Security services not involved in Litvinenko case – Russia
Russia asks UK to explain BBC Litvinenko claims
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