UK counter-terrorism police probe suspected poisoning of Russian spy

Former KGB spy Col. Sergei Skripal, who worked under cover for MI6, and his daughter Yulia, are in critical condition after exposure Monday to an unidentified substance in the British town of Salisbury. As toxicology test results on the substance are awaited, the British national counter terrorism agency has taken over the investigation. UK Prime Minister Theresa May called a National Security Committee meeting, saying she would not prejudge the case before the investigation.  Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson told parliament that the UK would respond “appropriately and robustly” to Russian involvement in the case. The foreign ministry in Moscow called Johnson’s comments “wild” and the Russian embassy in London demanded that the UK authorities step in at once to end the campaign demonizing Russia. Most British media mentioned that the Salisbury incident came a little over a decade after the former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned by radioactive polonium in a London hotel.