Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was killed using epibatidine, a toxin from South American dart frogs, experts confirm. The UK government stated, “Only the Russian state had the means, motive and opportunity to deploy this lethal toxin to target Navalny during his imprisonment in a Russian penal colony in Siberia, and we hold it responsible for his death.” Epibatidine is a powerful poison that acts as a painkiller hundreds of times stronger than morphine, causing muscle paralysis and suffocation. Alastair Hay, a toxicology professor at the University of Leeds, said, “Your chest wall doesn’t expand and contract, so essentially you can’t breathe and you’re [suffocated].” He added, “There isn’t an antidote to this [poison] that I know of.” Although exotic, epibatidine can be synthesized in labs and was studied for lung disease pain relief but is too toxic for use. Russia has a history of poisoning opponents, such as Alexander Litvinenko with polonium-210 and Sergei Skripal with novichok. UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said, “Russia saw Navalny as a threat. By using this form of poison the Russian state demonstrated the despicable tools it has at its disposal and the overwhelming fear it has of political opposition.” Experts suggest the choice of epibatidine was deliberate, noting its difficulty to detect due to small quantities needed and the need for specialized samples. Dr Brett Edwards said, “If they wanted to do it quietly, they wouldn’t have used a toxin.” Some believe Russia used this rare toxin either to test new methods or as a brutal message. Dr Luca Trenta from Swansea University said this case was less about overt signalling like previous attacks. Despite the mystery, Dr Edwards concluded, “It’s intriguing, but in essence, it’s just murder. It’s just standard political murder. They’ve always done it. They’ll keep doing it.”