Berlin: Labs agree Navalny poisoned with Novichok

The German government says specialist labs in France and Sweden have confirmed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok.

A German military laboratory previously confirmed the substance in his samples.

German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Monday that the organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has also received samples and is taking steps to have those tested at its reference laboratories.

Navalny fell ill on a Russian domestic flight on August 20 and was transferred to Germany two days later for specialist treatment in hospital.