Prominent Russian journalist leaves country after threats

Prominent Russian political commentator and writer Yulia Latynina has left Russia fearing for her life, she told a Moscow radio station.

Latynina's car was set on fire at the beginning of September, weeks after unidentified assailants sprayed a poisonous substance on her house outside Moscow and the car.

"I'm quite scared ... I'm terrified that the people who did it were prepared for fatalities," Latynina said of the arson.

"I'm abroad, my parents are also abroad. It's unlikely I'll be going to Russia soon," she told the Echo of Moscow radio station late Saturday.

Latynina, who works as a columnist at the Novaya Gazeta newspaper, has been critical of the Kremlin's policy in the Chechnya republic in the Caucasus, as well as the local authorities.

Last year, Latynina was attacked in the centre of Moscow.