International

Ukraine missile toll rises to 40 as Russia denies attack

by Vitalii Matokha with Stanislav Doshchitsyn in Kyiv Agence France-Presse DNIPRO, Ukraine (AFP) — The toll from a devastating strike on the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro rose to 40 on Monday, as more bodies were pulled from the debris of one of Russia’s deadliest attacks since its invasion. Kyiv has called for more weapons to defend itself and at the weekend received pledges of British tanks, but Russian President Vladimir Putin warned more armaments […]

UK vows more action against Iran after execution

LONDRES, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain on Monday vowed more reprisals against what it said was Tehran’s “weakened and isolated regime” after it executed a UK-Iranian dual national. Following the killing of Alireza Akbari on Saturday, the UK summoned Iran’s most senior diplomat and recalled its own ambassador. But despite slapping sanctions on Iran’s prosecutor general Mohammad Jafar Montazeri it stopped short of opposition demands to ban the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Faced with […]

Ukraine missile toll rises to 36, Russia denies attack

  Dnipro, Ukraine (AFP) The toll from Russia’s devastating strike on a residential block in Dnipro rose on Monday to 36, as fears grew more bodies would be pulled from the rubble and the Kremlin denied responsibility. Emergency service workers with rescue dogs dug for survivors into the night Sunday in the wake of one of the deadliest recent attacks of Russia’s nearly year-long invasion. “We’ve been working for 19 or 20 hours without sleep […]

Russian jailed five years for refusing to fight in Ukraine

  Moscow, Russia (AFP) A Russian court sentenced a 24-year-old professional soldier to five years in prison for refusing to fight in Ukraine, officials said on Thursday. The soldier, “not wanting to take part in a special military operation”, did not report for duty in May 2022, said the press service for courts in the region of Bashkortostan in the southern Urals. Law enforcement located the man, Marsel Kandarov, in September, the statement added. Separately, […]

NATO hints at more heavy weapons for Ukraine

  Kyiv, Ukraine (AFP) Kyiv can expect more deliveries of heavy weapons from Western countries soon, NATO said Sunday, as Russian President Vladimir Putin praised his forces after their claimed capture of a Ukraine town. Dramatic rescue efforts unfolded at a tower block in the eastern city of Dnipro, shattered by a Russian missile strike that left 30 people dead and an estimated 34 people missing. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the Russian people’s “cowardly […]

Kremlin says British tanks in Ukraine will ‘burn’

  Moscow, Russia (AFP) The Kremlin said on Monday that British tanks promised to Ukraine will “burn” on the battlefield. “The special military operation will continue. These tanks are burning and will burn,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, using Moscow’s term for the Ukraine offensive. He added that plans by some Western countries — like the UK and Poland — to send tanks to Ukraine will “not change the situation on the ground. It […]

Latvia hit by worst flood in decades

  Jekabpils, Latvia  (AFP) Latvian authorities on Sunday urged residents of certain central areas to evacuate their homes in response to the worst flooding the Baltic state has seen in decades. “It will be near impossible to get you out from among the ice cold sludge once it rushes into your homes,” Raivis Ragainis, mayor of the city of Jekabpils, warned on local radio. Particularly exposed are Jekabpils and the town of Plavinas and surrounding […]

Toll from Dnipro strike in Ukraine rises to 35

  Kyiv, Ukraine (AFP) A weekend strike on a residential building in Ukraine’s centre-east city of Dnipro killed at least 35 people, including two children, the regional governor said Monday as rescue operations continued. “As of now, the enemy attack took the lives of 35 residents of the building, including two children. Thirty nine people were saved, 75 were injured,” Dnipropetrovsk regional governor Valentyn Reznichenko said on social media. He added that the “fate of […]

Man held over London shooting that left 7-year-old critical

London, United Kingdom (AFP) London police said on Monday they had arrested a 22-year-old man after a seven-year-old girl was left fighting for her life following a shooting as mourners left a church service. Gunshots rang out at the St Aloysius church in Euston, central London, on Saturday afternoon as mourners were leaving a requiem mass for a mother and daughter. “Detectives investigating the shooting outside a church in Euston have arrested a 22-year-old man […]

Italy catches fugitive Mafia boss Messina Denaro

Rome, Italy (AFP) Italian anti-mafia police caught fugitive Sicilian godfather Matteo Messina Denaro on Monday, ending a 30-year manhunt for Italy’s most wanted mobster. A former trigger man who once reportedly boasted he could “fill a cemetery” with his victims, the 60-year-old Denaro is believed to have become the “boss of bosses” following the death of Salvatore “The Beast” Riina in November 2022. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Messina Denaro was the “most significant” mafia […]

Hopes of survivors in Nepal plane crash ‘nil’

Pokhara, Nepal (AFP) by Sagar Ghimire Nepali rescue workers scoured a debris-strewn ravine Monday for more bodies from the mangled wreckage of a plane with 72 people on board, with hopes of any survivors now “nil”, according to officials. The Yeti Airlines ATR 72 plummeted into the steep gorge, smashed into pieces and burst into flames as it approached the central city of Pokhara on Sunday morning, in Nepal’s worst aviation disaster since 1992. The […]

Indonesia stadium disaster negligence trial begins

Surabaya, Indonesia (AFP) Five Indonesian men charged with negligence leading to one of the worst stadium disasters in football history appeared in court by video link on Monday as their trial began. The stampede in October in the East Java city of Malang — which killed 135 people, including more than 40 children — came after police fired tear gas into packed stands when supporters invaded the pitch at the end of a match between rivals […]