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Russian ex-spy Sergei Skripal 'improving rapidly' after poisoning: Hospital

Russian ex-spy Sergei Skripal 'improving rapidly' after poisoning: Hospital

Sergei Skripal

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Skripal 'is responding well to treatment, improving rapidly and is no longer in a critical condition,' said Salisbury District Hospital director Christine Blanshard

Sergei Skripal, the former Russian spy who was found slumped in an English city after being poisoned is no longer in critical condition and is "improving rapidly," the hospital treating him said Friday.

Skripal "is responding well to treatment, improving rapidly and is no longer in a critical condition," said Salisbury District Hospital director Christine Blanshard.

As for his daughter, "her strength is growing daily and she can look forward to the day when she is well enough to leave the hospital", Blanshard added.

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It was the first official news on the condition of Sergei Skripal, 66, since he and his daughter Yulia were found poisoned on a bench on March 4 in Salisbury.

Britain blames Russia for the poisoning of the Skripals -- a charge the Kremlin furiously denies.

The affair has sparked a bitter diplomatic crisis between London and Moscow and prompted a wave of tit-for-tat expulsions of diplomats between Russia and the West.

The first public comments by Yulia Skripal since the poisoning emerged on Thursday.

"My strength is growing daily," she was quoted as saying in comments released by the police.