US Police Shoot, Kill Driver in Chinese Consulate Incident
US police shot and killed a person who crashed their car into China’s consulate in San Francisco on
2023-10-10 13:28
Ukraine advances in east and south with more ‘partial success’ even as rain muddies battlefield
Ukrainian soldiers fighting off Russian attacks in the eastern battlefield achieved “partial success” in the past 24 hours while troops in southern Ukraine inflicted over a hundred Russian casualties, officials said as the war was close to clocking 600 days. The troops secured partial success near Andriivka, a small Ukrainian village captured last month along with the nearby locality of Klishhiivka, said Ilia Yevlash, a spokesperson for Ukraine‘s eastern group of forces. "We are repelling constant attacks near Klishchiivka and Andriivka,” the spokesperson told national television. "Every day we are making headway in the Bakhmut sector. We are talking about hundreds of metres at a time that we are liberating from our enemies and strengthening our positions. It is, however, too early to talk about achieving concrete goals,” he said. The “partial” headway in territorial advance was also reported in southern Ukraine by general Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, commander of forces in the south. “We have partial success west of Verbove. During the past 24 hours, the enemy carried out eight airstrikes, 18 combat encounters, and also launched 455 artillery barrages,” the top military official said on his Telegram channel. Verbove is one of the cluster of villages that Ukraine is targeting, with the larger town of Tokmak as the next large target. The Ukrainian units of rocket troops and artillery from the Tavria Air Defence Forces launched 795 fire missions during the day, he said. “The total losses of the enemy amounted to 147 people,” he said but did not give details about the injuries, deaths, and capture of Russian soldiers as prisoners of war. Three Russian ammunition depots were also bombed, along with two tanks and an artillery system, he said. This comes amid first signs of deterioration in battlefield conditions due to weather as Russian military bloggers said rainfall has worsened visibility in southern Ukraine. Experts monitoring the war said changing weather conditions will hinder the reconnaissance drone operations on both sides. “One Russian milblogger claimed that the ground has become muddy and obstructs tracked vehicle movement, though another milblogger claimed that the ground has not yet become muddy enough to inhibit vehicle movement,” said the Institute for the Study of War in its latest assessment on Monday. It added that exact conditions likely vary along the frontline, though weather conditions are generally worsening.It cited Yevlash’s report stating that the Russian forces are relying less heavily on aviation and drone activity in the Kupiansk-Lyman direction due to heavy rainfall. The Russian accounts of fighting claimed its forces thwarted Ukrainian attacks near Bakhmut and inflicted heavy casualties in strikes on Ukrainian positions outside the city. Now on the edge of entering its fifth month, Ukraine’s counteroffensive aims to secure control of areas around Bakhmut in order to recapture the town, which was seized by Russian forces in May after months of heavy battles. Read More Ukraine-Russia war – live: It is in Russia’s interests to inflame war in the Middle East, says Zelensky Zelensky says Russia trying to incite war in the Middle East Satellite images show spike in border activity as North Korea ‘supplies weapons to Russia’ for Ukraine war Ukraine repels Russian attacks on five fronts as Putin resorts to old weaponry and reserves Russia reports coolant leak in backup line at space station and says crew not in danger
2023-10-10 13:18
Bitcoin Tightens Grip on Crypto Market in Sign of Cautious Investor Mood
Bitcoin’s share of the cryptocurrency market is climbing toward levels last seen in 2021, a sign of the
2023-10-10 12:22
Ukraine-Russia war – live: It is in Russia’s interests to inflame war in the Middle East, says Zelensky
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that it was in Russia’s interests to stoke war in the Middle East to weaken global unity. “Based on available information -- very clear information -- it is in Russia’s interests to inflame war in the Middle East to create a new source of pain and suffering that would weaken global unity, create divisions and help Russia in undermining freedom in Europe,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address. It comes as Ukrainian forces have made small gains over the weekend along multiple points of the frontline as “heavy rain” threatens to slow down Kyiv’s counteroffensive. Geolocated images showed Ukrainian infantry roughly 300 metres north of Novoprokopivka, south of Robotyne, which is the deepest they have been seen inside Russian-occupied territory as part of that attack. This line has emerged as Ukraine’s main axis of the counteroffensive in the past month, though progress slowed after the liberation of Robotyne at the end of August. The Ukrainian General Staff also claimed on Sunday that Ukrainian forces had achieved “partial success” near Bakhmut, though that remains unconfirmed. Read More Russia claims `neo-Nazis' were at wake for Ukrainian soldier in village struck by missile killing 52 Zelensky says Russia trying to incite war in the Middle East Ukraine repels Russian attacks on five fronts as Putin resorts to old weaponry and reserves Russia plans to reverse global nuclear test ban, announces envoy
2023-10-10 12:21
Chinese Copper Tycoon Goes Missing, Believed to Be Detained by Police
Executives at one of China’s largest copper trading houses have lost contact with the company’s founder and believe
2023-10-10 11:57
Hamas Outmaneuvered Israel’s Surveillance Prowess by Going Dark
Facing one of the most sophisticated surveillance states on the planet, Hamas simply went dark. The militant group’s
2023-10-10 11:47
Oil Holds Biggest Gain in Six Months on Middle East Tensions
Oil steadied after its biggest jump in six months as Israel said its retaliation for attacks by militant
2023-10-10 10:45
PG&E to Pay $45 Million for Second-Largest California Wildfire
PG&E Corp. will pay a $45 million penalty for its role in starting the second-largest wildfire in California
2023-10-10 07:17
World Bank urges cooling of Israel-Gaza conflict as annual meetings start
By Andrea Shalal and David Lawder MARRAKECH, Morocco (Reuters) -The World Bank on Monday urged a "rapid de-escalation" of the
2023-10-10 03:56
Former US general reminds GOP attacking Biden of time Trump leaked Israeli intel to Iran ally
A former US general took to Twitter on Sunday to remind Republicans laying blame on the Biden administration after Hamas militants launched the deadliest attack on Israel in decades that Donald Trump shared classified intelligence from Israel with Iran-allied Russia when he was president. Retired army general Mark Hertling shared a story about allegations the former president told top Russian officials that Israel had successfully hacked Isis computers in order to gain intelligence about bomb plots against the West in a meeting at the White House in 2017. At the time, the former president’s actions reportedly ignited fears by Israel that Russia could have passed the information to its ally Iran, which has long been a supporter of the Palestinian cause. Mr Trump reportedly leaked the information in a meeting in the Oval Office in May 2017 with the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and the then-Russian ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak. Amid uproar over the revelation, Mr Trump insisted he had every right to give Russia the information. He tweeted: “As president, I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled WH meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against Isis and terrorism." General Hertling’s reminder of the incident comes after Republican presidential contenders accused the Biden administration of helping to fund the attacks in Israel, which saw more than 700 killed, after a deal was struck to free up $6bn in previously frozen assets to assist humanitarian causes in Iran. The complex deal was announced by the Biden administration in September as part of the agreement to release five US citizens detained in Iran. As part of the deal, roughly $6bn in frozen Iranian assets that were being held in South Korea were transferred to an account in Doha, Qatar. Administration officials have insisted the money has not yet been spent and is now being held in a restricted account in Doha – but in the wake of the Hamas attacks on Israel over the weekend, Republicans including Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Tim Scott and JD Vance have claimed the money may have been linked to the attacks. In response to Biden administration claims the money can only be used for humanitarian purposes, conservatives have responded that the money is “fungible”, meaning Iran could take advantage of the $6bn by reallocating or moving around other funds. “For all those focused on ‘fungible’ perhaps this is something to be considered,” General Hertling, the former commander of US troops in Europe and an outspoken critic of Mr Trump, tweeted. Iran provides some $100m a year to Palestinian armed groups, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, according to the US State Department. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis accused Joe Biden of “policies that have gone easy on Iran” and have “helped to fill their coffers.” In a video statement, he said: “Israel is now paying the price for those policies. We’re going to stand with the State of Israel, they need to root out Hamas and we need to stand up to Iran.” Meanwhile, South Carolina Senator and GOP presidential hopeful Tim Scott alleged the attack was “the Biden $6bn ransom payment at work.” “We didn’t just invite this aggression, we paid for it,” he said in a statement. Mr Trump also accused the Biden administration of funding the Hamas attack on Israel, falsely stating American taxpayer dollars helped fund these attacks. Senior Biden administration officials have stressed $6bn is not taxpayer money, and comes from payments made by South Korea to Iran to buy oil in recent years. Mr Trump also argued that, under president Biden, the US is perceived as being “weak and ineffective” on the global stage, thereby opening the door to hostility. “They didn’t have that level of aggression with me. They didn’t have it. This would have never happened with me either,” Mr Trump claimed, adding later in Cedar Rapids that Mr Biden had “betrayed Israel” with the deal. The White House insists the money is ringfenced for humanitarian purposes — such as food and medicine for Iranians — and handled by what the administration described as vetted non-Iranian vendors. Adrienne Watson, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council, said she could not directly address Republican criticism due to federal restrictions. “But I can clarify the facts: Not a single cent from these funds has been spent, and when it is spent, it can only be spent on things like food and medicine for the Iranian people,” she said on Saturday in a statement. “These funds have absolutely nothing to do with the horrific attacks today and this is not the time to spread disinformation.” Over the weekend, Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing hundreds of people and taking dozens captive across the Gaza border. More than 700 people were killed, with at least nine Americans among the dead. Palestinian officials have said that more than 400 have been killed in retaliatory Israeli attacks on Gaza. Thousands more people are believed to be injured while the number of individuals taken hostage by Hamas is currently unclear. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately declared a state of war and promised “mighty vengeance” on Israel’s attackers. On Monday, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant ordered the “complete siege” of Gaza, saying authorities will cut electricity and block the entry of food and fuel. Meanwhile, sirens have sounded in both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, with witnesses in the latter city hearing explosions that may have been from rocket impacts or from mid-air interceptions. Read More Israel-Hamas war live updates: ‘Complete siege’ on Gaza ordered as rocket explosions heard in Jerusalem Donald Trump 'handed Russia classified intelligence on Israel successfully hacking Isis computers' Families of Britons killed or held hostage in Israel-Hamas war share ‘indescribable pain’ The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary
2023-10-10 03:30
Mbankolo landslides kill 30 in Cameroon capital Yaoundé
Rescue efforts are hampered by flooding, forcing locals to pull out bodies with their bare hands.
2023-10-09 20:24
Airport suspends flights after ‘threat of attack’ on plane from Iran
Flights have been suspended at Germany’s Hamburg airport this morning after authorities received a threat of an attack against a plane from the Iranian capital Tehran. The airport said that there had been no takeoffs or landings since 12.40pm as police officers conduct a search of the aircraft and its 198 passengers and crew. Federal police said they received an emailed threat on Monday morning of an attack on the Tehran-Hamburg flight and were taking it seriously, though they didn’t give details. The spokesperson described the measures, which included interviewing passengers, as normal procedure when a threat is classified as serious. No takeoffs or landings are possible because the airport fire brigade is involved with the search, the spokesperson added. The Hamburg airport warned that flight delays may ensue due to the measures and did not give an estimate of when they could resume. The incident comes against the backdrop of violence between Israel and Palestine, after Hamas militants launched a suprise attack over the weekend. More follows Read More Indian rescue copters are flying into region where flood washed out bridges and killed at least 52 Israeli and Palestinian supporters rally across U.S. as Israel declares war after Hamas attack Appeal issued over four siblings missing from Co Fermanagh
2023-10-09 20:23