Former Russian intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter were the target of "attempted murder" using a nerve agent, British police have revealed.
"This is being treated as a major incident involving attempted murder by administration of a nerve agent," Mark Rowley, Britain's top counter-terrorism officer, said.
Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, were found unconscious on a bench outside a shopping centre in the southern city of Salisbury. A police officer who was one of the first to respond to the incident is also in a serious condition in hospital.
Rowley said government scientists had identified the specific nerve agent but he would not say what it was because it was part of the investigation. He also declined to give any details about how it was administered.
What are nerve agents?