Doctors can take blood from Skripals for chemical weapons testing, rules judge

The Russian double agent and his daughter who were targeted by an assassination attempt in Salisbury in early March may have permanent brain damage and may never fully recover, a High Court judge has said.1

The first details to be made public about the condition of Sergei and Yulia Skripal came in a Court of Protection judgment authorising medical staff from Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust to take blood samples from the two for testing by the independent Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons. The trust may also show the organisation the Skripals’ medical records since 4 March, when the attack took place, Mr Justice Williams ruled.

Blood tests carried out by the UK government’s Porton Down laboratory after the attack identified the …