Bio-weapons

Photographs of Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko published in the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita raise the question of what happened to him between July 4, when the photo on the left was taken, and October 10, the date of the photo on the right.

The newspaper comments:

Polish experts on biological weapons with whom we talked yesterday, didn't want to describe what kind of substance had caused such serious health problems of Yushchenko, just by looking at these photos. - On the base of these changes, it can only be said that this was a very strong agent, which influenced metabolic processes, by increasing of aging and ravaging Yushchchenko's organism in a similar way, as for ex. - cancer disease ravages ill people - we had heard. - If for so many weeks, the Austrian doctors couldn't established what kind of agent it was, then certainly this was not some agent that is used often. It can only be assumed, that special services had used the most favourite weapon of the KGB - ricin toxin.

The denial from a Ukrainian security official doesn't exactly make reassuring reading:

Oct 11 2004 3:59PM
No bio-weapons used against Ukrainian candidate - official

KYIV. Oct 11 (Interfax) - Deputy head of the Ukrainian Security Service Ihor Drychazhny said that stories claiming the illness of opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko was caused by biological weapons are unfounded.

"From the scientific point of view, there are no reasons to suspect that biological weapons were used," Drychazhny said at a Kyiv briefing on Monday.

He noted that Ukraine did not have and has not manufactured any biological weapons in modern times, or when it was part of the Soviet Union. "Those who make such statements do not fully understand the meaning of the term biological weapons," Drychazhny said.

He said that it is impossible to use a biological weapon against a single individual. "It is a virus that spreads uncontrollably," Drychazhny said.

(Via Marius)

See also in this blog:


Poisoned Letter

State-sponsored Terrorism