The attacks on the rule of law have begun.

The US has pledged to send 31 of its M1 Abram battle tanks, worth an estimated $400m, to Ukraine to help the resistance fight back against the Russian onslaught as the one-year anniversary of Vladimir Putin’s invasion approaches. Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s ambassador to the US, said the decision by Joe Biden’s administration amounted to “another blatant provocation” against Moscow, pledged that the tanks would be destroyed and warned the West it would come to regret the “delusion” that Ukraine could ever win the day. Russian state TV has since made a point of mocking the Abrams as “battered” and prone to getting stuck in a segment downplaying the threat the new additions to Kyiv’s arsenal pose. Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has said he believes tanks are crucial to replenish his nation’s military hardware ahead of what he says will be increased Russian offences in the spring, with intense fighting already seen in eastern Ukraine for weeks. Kyiv also wants them to boost its bid to recapture territory taken by Moscow’s forces earlier in the conflict. Germany has dithered on the question of whether to answer Mr Zelensky’s appeal for tanks but has since agreed to send Leopard 2 models, with Poland, Canada, Norway and Spain now looking set to follow suit. When it comes to the M1s, experts have warned of the complex logistics involved in getting these high-tech vehicles to the battlefield. The extensive and tricky maintenance required for their use mean that it could be some time before they appear on the frontlines in Eastern Europe. The first M1 tank was manufactured by American armoured vehicle manufacturer General Dynamics Land Systems in 1978 and was first delivered to the US Army in 1980. Each model costs around $10m to make, according to Reuters. It has to be crewed by a team of four (driver, commander, loader and gunner), has a maximum speed of 42 miles per hour, has a maximum range of 624 miles and runs on a 1,500 horsepower gas turbine engine. The M1 is armed with an M256 120mm smoothbore cannon, as well as two machine guns: a 12.7mm and a 7.62mm M240. Defence industry expert Sydney Freedberg described them as “big vehicles, heavily armoured” to Al Jazeera, adding that they are “much better protected than anything the Soviets built, or anything the Russians currently have.” He also cautioned that they have been used far less often in Europe than the Leopard and could end up posing the Ukrainians problems, given that they require additional training and will need spare parts, warehousing and a high degree of care. “It guzzles fuel and the engine is difficult to repair and maintain,” Jack Watling, a senior research fellow for land warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, has also warned. More positive about their potential impact – while still favouring the Leopards over all – was retired US army general Mark Hertling, who commanded the 1st Armored Division in Iraq during the troop surge of 2007 to 2008, and who said in a Twitter thread: “The M1-series, in my view, is the best in the world.” He too stressed that training was “critical”, adding: “Having fired T-72s, Chieftains, Challengers, Leo IIs & Abrams, the M1 requires the most turret training.” Read More Ukraine-Russia news – live: Putin ‘shifting war to focus on Nato and West’ Russian shells kill 10 in Ukraine as Putin’s forces seek gains before Western tanks arrive Who is sending tanks to Ukraine?

This time of year is supposed to be about sunshine and emerging from the cold.

For months, federal prosecutors have brought witnesses in front of a grand jury in Washington, DC, to investigate efforts by former President Donald Trump and his close allies to reverse the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Natalie Portman is the proud mother of two children Aleph and Amalia

The Philadelphia Phillies have hit a bunch of home runs in the MLB playoffs, but JT Realmuto's in Game 5 was different.

At this point of his career, Bobby Wagner has garnered enough accolades that his resume is fully burnished

Brazil is urging a 10-year precautionary pause on deep sea mining in international waters just days after companies and countries were allowed to start applying for provisional licenses

Bill Maher drew links between the KKK and wokes due to their fixation with race

Endy Rodriguez hit a go-ahead, bases-loaded triple and drove in four runs, fellow rookie Liover Peguero had a home run among his three hits and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Philadelphia Phillies 7-6

Manchester United have reportedly agreed a deal worth an initial £64 million to sign Atalanta...

A woman who says that the recently detained person of interest in the suspected Oregon serial killer case Jesse Lee Calhoun lived with her and her children for a year and a half, has shared allegations that there may have been connections between the 38-year-old and some of the victims. In a video interview shared on YouTube, Krista Senor said Calhoun was linked to at least two of the four murdered women and that he had sex and sold fentanyl to other women during their relationship, according to Oregon Live. “I’m still in shock over this. It’s just surreal,” Ms Sinor, 43 told The Oregonian on Wednesday. “It’s very strange. I can’t wrap my mind around any of it. Neither can his family or friends.” Police spent three days searching her apartment in Milwaukie, Oregon after they arrested Calhoun on 6 June. Former Oregon Governor Kate Brown commuted Calhoun’s sentence for several burglaries on 23 June 2021, about a year before he was set to be released, for his work fighting wildfires. Ms Sinor said Calhoun was connected to two of the victims, Ashley Real, 22, from Portland, and Bridget Leann Ramsey Webster, 31, from Milwaukie. The other two victims are Charity Perry and Kristin Smith – police said on Monday 17 July that their deaths are connected and that a person of interest had been identified. “No charges have been filed against anyone in connection with any of these four death investigations,” the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office and law enforcement agencies said in a press release. “Investigators have interviewed multiple people in connection with these cases and have identified at least one person of interest that is linked to all four of the decedents.” A man who saw Calhoun being arrested told KGW that “There’s craziness in the world. You hope it doesn’t happen too often. It was pretty nuts to see it happen in my backyard”. Calhoun was arrested on 6 June as he and his girlfriend were at a gas station in Milwaukie. The arrest didn’t occur without incident. “I don’t know how he made it through the 10 officers but he made it through and across traffic and down to the river and hopped in,” the witness told KGW. “I was like, ‘I wonder what this guy did,’” the witness added. “It seems whatever he did was really important — or required that much law enforcement, I should say.” The four women were all found dead across the region since the middle of February. Ms Sinor said in the YouTube interview that Calhoun and Ms Real had been seeing each other on and off for about a year and that he would provide Ms Webster with drugs in exchange for sex, but Ms Sinor added that she didn’t know how Calhoun was linked to Ms Perry or Ms Smith. When Ms Sinor was asked if Calhoun is a serial killer, Ms Sinor said “My first thought is that maybe a fentanyl overdose and he freaked out”. “He’s a family guy. He seems like a family guy. He’s really close with his family and he would do anything for them and stuff but like my kids ... he loves my kids and my kids love him,” she added in the YouTube interview, according to KGW. The witness who saw Calhoun being arrested told KGW: “I don’t want to see him come out from bars ever again.” Read More Portland ‘serial killer’ – live: Jesse Calhoun got prison pardon for fighting wildfires before deaths of women An inmate was pardoned by Oregon’s governor. Two years on he’s a person of interest in four suspicious deaths Jesse Calhoun identified as person of interest in suspicious deaths of four women in Portland