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Volodymyr Saldo (2nd from left; on July 21, 2022) in an ID card center in Kherson
Photo:
AA / ddp/abaca press
Volodymyr Saldo is in an induced coma in an intensive care unit in Moscow.
He is the head of the military administration set up by Russia in the occupied southern Ukrainian territory of Kherson.
"Today he was flown from the Crimea to Moscow in an artificial coma in a special plane," reports the Russian Telegram channel "Baza".
Saldo's condition is described as critical, poisoning as a possible cause.
The 66-year-old was born in Ukraine.
He was already politically active before the Russian invasion and was mayor of Cherson from 2002 to 2012, after which he sat in parliament for ex-President Viktor Yanukovych's party until 2014.
In 2015 he lost the election for mayor of Kherson.
Shortly after the Russians occupied large parts of southern Ukraine, Saldo was appointed head of the military administration in Kherson.
Rapidly deteriorating condition
Saldo is in Moscow's Sklifosovsky Institute for Emergency Medicine - a clinic that also specializes in poisoning.
He was initially hospitalized with suspected heart attack and stroke, but this was not confirmed.
Instead, the doctors expressed the suspicion that he had been poisoned.
His health deteriorated rapidly over time, putting him in a coma.
Saldo is considered one of the main targets of Ukrainian partisan activities, which have intensified in southern Ukraine in recent weeks.
An attack on a local official of the occupation authorities became known on Saturday.
mamk/dpa