(Bloomberg) -- The daughter of a Russian former double agent poisoned in southern England last month was discharged from hospital.
Yulia Skripal, 33, was found collapsed on a bench in Salisbury alongside her father -- Sergei Skripal -- after being exposed to a nerve agent in an incident the British government blamed on Russia. Both patients have “responded exceptionally well” to treatment, and doctors hope Sergei Skripal will also be discharged “in due course,” Christine Blanshard, medical director at Salisbury District Hospital, said in a televised statement.
“This is not the end of her treatment, but marks a significant milestone,” Blanshard said of Yulia Skripal's release.
Daughter of Poisoned Spy Moves to Fore in Diplomatic Spat
U.K. authorities identified the substance used in the March 4 attack as Novichok, a Soviet-era nerve agent, which led to the coordinated expulsions of more than 150 Russian diplomats by the U.K. and allies including the U.S., Canada, Australia and European nations. Russia, for its part, denied its involvement, demanding proof and a role in any investigation.
As the diplomatic spat intensified, Russia stepped up efforts to discredit Britain in the United Nations Security Council as well as on social media, saying that the U.K., Ukraine or U.S. were responsible for the attack and the nerve agent came from Slovakia, the Czech Republic or even Sweden.
It continued in the same vein on Tuesday in a tweet from the Russian Embassy in London congratulating Yulia Skripal on her recovery. “We need urgent proof that what is being done to her is done on her own free will,” it said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jessica Shankleman in London at jshankleman@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Flavia Krause-Jackson at fjackson@bloomberg.net, Stuart Biggs, Mark Williams
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