A Russian surveillance aircraft flew above a US base in Syria for an "extended period of time" on Friday morning in what officials deemed an intelligence collecting mission, a senior defense official said.

By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON U.S. job growth likely slowed moderately in September while the unemployment rate probably retreated

The case of Adnan Syed, whose conviction for a Maryland murder was overturned and later reinstated, will be

On the surface, the turmoil in Russia would seem like something for the U.S. to celebrate: a powerful mercenary group engaging in a short-lived clash with Russia’s military at the very moment that Ukraine is trying to gain momentum in a critical counteroffensive. But the public response by Washington has been decidedly cautious. Officials say the U.S. had no role in the conflict, insist this was an internal matter for Russia and decline to comment on whether it could affect the war in Ukraine. The reason: to avoid creating an opening for Russian President Vladimir Putin to seize on the rhetoric of American officials and rally Russians by blaming his Western adversaries. Even President Joe Biden, known for straying from talking points, has stayed on script. Biden told reporters Monday that the United States and NATO weren’t involved. Biden said he held a video call with allies over the weekend and they are all in sync in working to ensure that they give Putin “no excuse to blame this on the West” or NATO. “We made clear that we were not involved. We had nothing to do with it,” Biden said. “This was part of a struggle within the Russian system.” Biden and administration officials declined to give an immediate assessment of what the 22-hour uprising by the Wagner Group might mean for Russia’s war in Ukraine, for mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin or for Russia itself. “We’re going to keep assessing the fallout of this weekend’s events and the implications from Russia and Ukraine,” Biden said. “But it’s still too early to reach a definitive conclusion about where this is going.” Putin, in his first public comments since the rebellion, said “Russia’s enemies” had hoped the mutiny would succeed in dividing and weakening Russia, “but they miscalculated.” He identified the enemies as “the neo-Nazis in Kyiv, their Western patrons and other national traitors.” Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia was investigating whether Western intelligence services were involved in Prigozhin’s rebellion. Over the course of a tumultuous weekend in Russia, U.S. diplomats were in contact with their counterparts in Moscow to underscore that the American government regarded the matter as a domestic affair for Russia, with the U.S. only a bystander, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said. Michael McFaul, a former U.S. ambassador to Russia, said that Putin in the past has alleged clandestine U.S. involvement in events — including democratic uprisings in former Soviet countries, and campaigns by democracy activists inside and outside Russia — as a way to diminish public support among Russians for those challenges to the Russian system. The U.S. and NATO “don’t want to be blamed for the appearance of trying to destabilize Putin,” McFaul said. A feud between the Wagner Group leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, and Russia’s military brass that has festered throughout the war erupted into the mutiny that saw the mercenaries leave Ukraine to seize a military headquarters in a southern Russian city. They rolled for hundreds of kilometers toward Moscow, before turning around on Saturday, in a deal whose terms remain uncertain. Biden’s national security team briefed him hourly as Prigozhin’s forces were on the move, the president said. He said he had directed them to “prepare for a range of scenarios” as Russia’s crisis unfolded. Biden did not elaborate on the scenarios. But national security spokesman John Kirby addressed one concern raised frequently as the world watched the cracks opening in Putin’s hold on power — worries that the Russian leader might take extreme action to reassert his command. Putin and his lieutenants have made repeated references to Russia’s nuclear weapons since invading Ukraine 16 months ago, aiming to discourage NATO countries from increasing their support to Ukraine. “One thing that we have always talked about, unabashedly so, is that it’s in nobody’s interest for this war to escalate beyond the level of violence that is already visited upon the Ukrainian people,” Kirby said at a White House news briefing. “It’s not good for, certainly, Ukraine and not good for our allies and partners in Europe. Quite frankly, it’s not good for the Russian people.” Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the weekend, telling him, ”’No matter what happened in Russia, let me say again, no matter what happened in Russia, we in the United States would continue to support Ukraine’s defense and sovereignty and its territorial integrity.” Biden said. The Pentagon is expected to announce Tuesday that it is sending up to $500 million in additional military aid to Ukraine, including more than 50 heavily armored vehicles and an infusion of missiles for air defense systems, U.S. officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the aid had not yet been publicly announced. Biden, in the first weeks after Putin sent tens of thousands of Russian forces into Ukraine in February 2022, had issued a passionate statement against the Russian leader’s continuing in command. “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power,” he said then, as reports emerged of Russian atrocities against civilians in Ukraine. On Monday, U.S. officials were careful not to be seen as backing either Putin or his former longtime protege, Prigozhin, in public comments. “We believe it’s up to the Russian people to determine who their leadership is,” Kirby said. White House officials were also trying to understand how Beijing was digesting the Wagner revolt and what it might mean for the China-Russia relationship going forward. China and Russia are each other’s closest major partner. The White House says Beijing has considered — but not followed through on — sending Russia weaponry for use in Ukraine. “I think it’d be fair to say that recent developments in Russia had been unsettling to the Chinese leadership,” said Kurt Campbell, coordinator for the Indo-Pacific at the White House National Security Council, speaking at a forum hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. “I think I’ll just leave it at that.” China values Russia as a friend in part to keep from standing alone against the U.S. and its allies in disputes. With Russia’s invasion and resulting international sanctions sapping Russian resources and now sparking a rebellion, McFaul said, Ukraine and its allies could make the case: ”’Xi Jinping, you know, if you want your buddy to stay in power, maybe this is the time to put some pressure on him to wrap up this war.‴ ___ AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report. Read More The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary Putin issues desperate message to Russian public after Wagner mutiny US to send $500 million in weapons, military aid to Ukraine, officials say What the papers say – June 27

Liverpool marked its return to the Europa League with a come-from-behind 3-1 victory at Austrian club LASK in Linz

Iowa may have improved to 1-0 on the year, but Brian Ferentz's Hawkeyes offense mustered only 24 points vs. Utah State. That is below the pace he needs to stay employed.

Jessica Pegula has completed a 6-4, 6-3 victory over No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka at the WTA Finals and clinched a spot in the semifinals at the season-ending championship

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 1, 2023--

Manchester United''s Hannah Blundell has reacted to iShowSpeed after he opened the footballer in an Ultimate Team pack on the new EA Sports FC 24 game. The revamped football game, formerly known as Fifa launched its early access on September 19th and iShowSpeed was one of the first people in the world to get his hands on it. The early access version also includes the popular Ultimate Team game, which now includes female players from the English, Spanish, German, French and American women's leagues which means the likes of Sam Kerr, Mary Earps, Alexia Putellas and Alex Morgan can be unlocked by players for the first time. However, Speed clearly didn't get the memo on this and was stunned when he opened several packs on his stream on Tuesday to learn that women were on the game. Opening one pack Speed saw that he had a Manchester United player who played at left back. The 18-year-old streaming sensation immediately got excited, presumably thinking that he was getting England international Luke Shaw. However, he was dumbfounded when he saw that it was actually Blundell. "What the f**k?!" he said before adding "Is that girl?" This could have backfired for Speed but Blundell took it in her stride. The 29-year-old reshared the footage from the official EAFC 24 account adding: "Hahahaha made it." Dexerto report that Blundell is a keen gamer herself with her own Twitch channel where she regularly plays Call of Duty. Blundell signed for United in 2021 having previously played for Chelsea since 2013 where she won the Women's Super League four times. She has earned 3 caps for England Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

MrBeast has produced content centered on giving away expensive goods and incredible sums of money, earning the nickname 'the giveaway king'

By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A witness in a Republican-led congressional probe said on Monday that Hunter Biden sought to

The world’s oldest dog survived until the age of 31 and his family owes his long life to his unusual diet of human food. Bobi the Portuguese mastiff only ate what his human family ate, soaked in water to remove any seasoning. His family, the Costas credit his 31-year lifespan to his calm and peaceful environment and his freedom to roam since they never put him on a leash or chain. The sociable creature spent most of his time in the back garden with his feline friends, say his family. The oldest dog ever passed away on 21 October at his home in the village of Conqueiros where he lived his entire life. Dr Karen Becker, a veterinarian who met Bobi several times announced his death, she wrote: "Last night, this sweet boy earned his wings. "Despite outliving every dog in history, his 11,478 days on earth would never be enough, for those who loved him. "Godspeed, Bobi…you’ve taught the world all you were meant to teach." Bobi was announced as the world’s oldest dog living and oldest dog ever on 2 February 2023. He was registered with the Veterinary Medical Service of the Municipality of Leira who confirmed his birth date of 11 May 1992. Despite being the world’s oldest dog, Bobi had a precarious start to life when Leonel’s father didn’t want to keep him and his fellow litter of four puppies. Leonel’s parents took the litter to have them put down whilst their mother was away but they missed little Bobi who hid in a pile of wood in the outbuilding where he was born. The children kept the puppy’s existence a secret until they found out and Bobi became part of the family. Leonel, 38, has owned several old dogs including Bobi’s mother, Gira, who lived to be 18, and another one of his dogs, Chicote, died at 22. Bobi enjoyed a long life with the Costa’s and he had over 100 guests at his 31st birthday party. “We see situations like this as a normal result of the life that they have, but Bobi is one of a kind,” Leonel said after Bobi was awarded his record. Read More That’s a lot of pies! Monster pumpkin breaks world record Russia Ukraine war live: Putin pushes more soldiers to frontline despite heavy losses Iceland PM to take part in first women’s strike in almost 50 years: ‘Women’s Day Off’ Russia Ukraine war live: Putin pushes more soldiers to frontline despite heavy losses Iceland PM to take part in first women’s strike in almost 50 years: ‘Women’s Day Off’ Ukraine destroys all Russia-launched drones and cruise missile in overnight attacks