Over the years, Kremlin political critics, turncoat spies and investigative journalists have been killed or assaulted in a variety of ways. Assassination attempts against foes of President Vladimir Putin have been common during his nearly quarter century in power. watch nowHis allies almost immediately said he was poisoned, but Russian officials denied it. A British inquiry found that Russian agents had killed Litvinenko, probably with Putin's approval, but the Kremlin denied any involvement. JournalistsNumerous journalists critical of authorities in Russia have been killed or suffered mysterious deaths, which their colleagues in some cases blamed on someone in the political hierarchy.

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Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Klimentyev, —, turncoat, Alexei Navalny, Navalny, Pyotr Verzilov, Verzilov, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Boris Nemtsov, Boris Yeltsin, Nemtsov, Putin, Alexander Litvinenko, Anna Politkovskaya, service's, Litvinenko, Sergei Skripal, Yulia, Novichok, Yuri Shchekochikhin, Shchekochikhin, Yevgeny Prigozhin Organizations: Sputnik, AFP, Getty, Kremlin, KGB, Authorities, Novaya Gazeta Locations: Moscow, Russia, Siberia, Omsk, Berlin, Germany, France, Sweden, Soviet, Russian, Chechnya, London, Britain, Salisbury, British, Novaya