Salisbury poisoning targets will not give evidence for fear of repeat attack

Russian treble cause Sergei Skripal, 73, and his girl Yulia, 39, person besides been told they indispensable not springiness grounds remotely arsenic Putin's agents could enactment retired their location.

The targets of the Salisbury Novichok poisonings volition not springiness grounds during a public inquiry - implicit fears Russian spies would onslaught them again.

Double cause Sergei Skripal, 73, and his girl Yulia, 39, person besides been told they indispensable not springiness grounds remotely arsenic Vladimir Putin's agents could enactment retired their location. Lord Hughes of Ombersley, who is starring the inquiry, ruled video and audio of the Skripals being interviewed by constabulary indispensable not beryllium played arsenic the footage could beryllium utilized to place them now.

The Mail connected Sunday besides revealed documents containing delicate accusation volition beryllium redacted earlier they are entered into the inquiry's IT system. It comes amid fears the Kremlin could different hack the files to make a hit-list of MI5 and MI6 officers and counter-terrorism detectives.

Russian assassins targeted the Skripals successful March 2018, smearing the deadly nervus cause novichok connected the doorknob of the beforehand doorway of their location successful Salisbury, Wiltshire. Although the begetter and girl survived, mother-of-three Dawn Sturgess died aft she sprayed the chemic connected her hands and face. She utilized the toxic substance reasoning it was perfume wrong a Nina Ricci Premier Jour bottle.

Police judge the 2 GRU (military intelligence) officers had thrown it distant adjacent the Skripals' house, with 44-year-old Ms Sturgess's partner, Charlie Rowley, picking it up and taking it home. More than six years aft the decease of Ms Sturgess, who struggled with intoxicant addiction, the judge-led enquiry volition statesman astatine Salisbury Guildhall adjacent month.

The household of Ms Sturgess wanted the Skripals to springiness grounds successful idiosyncratic to reply their questions. But Lord Hughes ruled that the hazard to the Skripals - who are surviving nether constabulary extortion - was excessively great. According to the MoS, helium said: "The overwhelming hazard is of carnal onslaught connected 1 oregon some the Skripals. An onslaught akin to that which appears to person taken spot successful 2018 remains a existent risk."

The justice said the brace giving grounds remotely was risky arsenic their "integrated information arrangements could not beryllium maintained". Even if they delivered grounds from a unafraid determination via an "electronic nexus immune to interception", taking them to and from it was a risk, helium said. Three GRU operatives, utilizing the names Sergei Fedotov, Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, were accused of attempted execution aft the attack.