Viktor Yushchenko the Ukrainian opposition leader has been the victim of dioxin poisoning, a doctor in Vienna who has been leading the examination on the political candidate said on Saturday.

Dr. Michael Zimpfer who is the chief of Vienna’s Rudolfinerhaus clinic said in a statement, "There is no doubt about the fact that the disease has been caused by a case of poisoning by dioxin."
Zimpfer believed the clinic's findings that Yushchenko had been poisoned was based on "skin changes, blood samples and histological findings".

Viktor Yushchenko the 50 year old pro Western candidate in the Ukraine's acrimoniously contested presidential race became ill on September 6 with an illness that has left his face severely disfigured.

He has been claiming since the illness that he was poisoned by political rivals.