Four carry on. They await confirmation of Aleksanyan’s transfer to hospital.

The hunger strikers, who acted in support of former vice-president of Yukos, terminally ill Vasily Aleksanyan, who, according to the Federal Penitentiary Service has been transferred to a cancer clinic, have interrupted their action, according to participant, Yulia Bashinova.

‘Some of the participants interrupted their hunger strike yesterday when information about Aleksanyan’s transfer to a specialist clinic was announced. Four people are still starving; they are waiting for confirmation from Aleksanyan’s lawyer, Yelena Lvova, about his transfer to a cancer centre. I think the strike will be interrupted by the evening’, Yulia Bashinova told journalists on Friday.

According to her, 14 people were involved in the action. ‘One in Rostov, one in Voronezh, two in Samara and ten in Moscow’, Bashinova said.

’One man became ill during the hunger strike. His blood-sugar levels dropped and an ambulance arrived to give him medical assistance. He didn’t interrupt the hunger strike. Other than that, everything was fine so to speak. No one fainted’, one participant said.

She added that participants in the hunger strike had now started to consume juices and broth.

It was reported earlier that on the 1st of February a group of people had commenced a hunger strike in support of V. Aleksanyan. Other people then joined them: a handful of people in Moscow, one in Samara and one in Voronezh and then yet another one in Samara and one in Rostov-on-Don, followed by a few more in Moscow until their number reached 14. Three of them had interrupted their hunger strike yesterday evening.

(‘Interfax’, 08.02.2008)