WARS
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 04:43
What to know after Day 936 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Putin orders increase in size of Russian military President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree that officially increases the number of personnel in Russia’s armed forces to almost 2.4 million people, including 1.5 million servicemen. The latest increase comes after a similar decree in December 2023, when the president boosted the number of employees in the Russian military to just over 2.2 million, including 1.3 million troops. In his order on Monday, Putin also instructed the Russian government to allocate the necessary funds for the Defense Ministry to carry out the increase, which formally takes the number of…
Monday, 16 September 2024 04:28
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 346
Houthi missile reaches central Israel for first time Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would inflict a "heavy price" on the Iran-aligned Houthis who control northern Yemen, after they reached central Israel with a missile on Sunday for the first time. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the group struck with a new hypersonic ballistic missile that travelled 2,040 km (1270 miles) in just 11 1/2 minutes. An Israeli military official said the missile was hit by an interceptor and fragmented in the air, rather than being completely destroyed. Air raid sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv and across central…
Monday, 16 September 2024 04:27
What to know after Day 935 of Russia-Ukraine war
WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine suffering high losses due to slow arms supplies, says Zelenskiy Ukrainian troops are suffering high losses because Western arms are arriving too slowly to equip the armed forces properly, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told CNN in an interview aired on Sunday. Russia has been gaining ground in parts of eastern Ukraine including around Pokrovsk. Capture of the transport hub could enable Moscow to open new lines of attack. Zelenskiy said the situation in the east was "very tough", adding that half of Ukraine's brigades there were not equipped. "So you lose a lot of people. You lose people…
Sunday, 15 September 2024 04:48
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 345
Hamas leader sends letters from hiding after almost a year of silence Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has written a rare letter to Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, according to the Lebanese militant group, in which he reaffirms his commitment to fighting Israel and supporting the Iran-backed alliance of regional militants known as the “Axis of Resistance.” Sinwar, Hamas’ political leader who is believed to be hiding underground in Gaza, told Nasrallah that the group is committed to the path of resistance taken by his slain predecessor Ismail Haniyeh and to the “unity of the Ummah (Islamic nation), at the heart of…
Sunday, 15 September 2024 04:48
What to know after Day 934 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Russia had reason to use nukes, but showed restraint – Medvedev Throughout the Ukraine conflict, Russia has had ample reason to use nuclear weapons, but has so far exercised restraint, the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, has said. He warned, however, that Moscow’s patience is not limitless, suggesting that Russia could respond harshly if Western nations allow Kiev to use the missiles they have provided to strike targets deep inside Russian territory. Kiev has been demanding that these limitations be lifted since at least May. Several media outlets have recently alleged that Washington and London…
Saturday, 14 September 2024 04:40
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 344
In gym salvaged from rubble, Gazans release anger on weight machines Israeli air strikes destroyed the building housing Adli al-Assar's gym in Khan Younis in February. So he decided he doesn't need a building. "I went to the area and dug with my own hands, along with the help of my children and friends, until we were able to retrieve some of the equipment," he explained. Now, his reopened gym is crammed with salvaged weightlifting machines on an empty patch of ground surrounded by a corrugated fence, where dozens of Gazans were pumping iron under the open sky. For displaced…
Saturday, 14 September 2024 04:39
What to know after Day 933 of Russia-Ukraine war
US officials question if easing Ukraine weapons restrictions would pay off As the U.S. and Britain discuss allowing Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike deep within Russia, some U.S. officials are deeply skeptical that doing so would make a significant difference in Kyiv's battle against Russian invaders. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrived in Washington on Friday to discuss with U.S. President Joe Biden whether to give Ukraine approval to use NATO-supplied weapons to hit targets far beyond Ukraine's borders, something the U.S. administration has so far not been willing to allow in the 2-1/2-year-old conflict. U.S. officials noted…
Friday, 13 September 2024 04:47
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 343
Israel names Hamas gunmen it says were targeted in strike that killed UNRWA staff The Israeli military on Thursday named nine men it said were Hamas militants killed in Gaza airstrikes that the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said had left six of its staffers dead. The military said three of the Hamas men had doubled as UNRWA workers. Reuters was unable to independently verify their identities. There was no immediate comment from Hamas. UNRWA said six staffers were killed in two airstrikes that hit a school in central Gaza on Wednesday, the highest death toll among its staff in…
Friday, 13 September 2024 04:46
What to know after Day 932 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Putin issues new warning to NATO Removing restrictions on Ukraine’s use of Western weapons would directly involve the US and its allies in the conflict with Russia and would be met with an appropriate response, Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned. The West has sent Ukraine long-range missiles such as Storm Shadows and ATACMS, which Kiev has so far used against Crimea and Donbass. In the past several days, however, the US and UK have suggested they might allow these weapons to be used to strike targets deeper into internationally recognized Russian territory. “We are not talking about…
Thursday, 12 September 2024 04:36
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 342
Hamas says ready to implement ceasefire without new conditions The Palestinian Hamas group said on Wednesday that its negotiators reiterated its readiness to implement an "immediate" ceasefire with Israel in Gaza based on a previous U.S. proposal without new conditions from any party. The Palestinian group said in a statement that their negotiation team, led by senior official Khalil al-Hayya, met mediators on Wednesday including Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egypt's intelligence chief Abbas Kamel in Doha to discuss the latest developments in Gaza. Talks have so far failed to reach a deal to end…
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Thursday, 12 September 2024 04:35
What to know after Day 931 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Russian troops reportedly pushing Ukrainians back in Kursk Russian forces appear to be pushing Ukrainian troops back in a Kiev-controlled area of Russia’s Kursk Region, footage circulating online purports to show. The Russian Defense Ministry has not confirmed that the counteroffensive has begun. A pro-Russian Telegram channel released on Wednesday clips that it claims show the achievements of the 51st Guard Regiment of the Russian Airborne Troops near the settlement of Snagost. Kiev deployed thousands of heavily armed troops for its operation on Russian soil. According to the Russian military, Ukrainian casualties have surpassed 10,000 during the month-long…
Wednesday, 11 September 2024 04:28
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 341
Israel close to completing Gaza missions, focus on north, defence minister says Israeli forces are near to fulfilling their mission in Gaza and their focus will turn to the country's northern border with Lebanon as daily exchanges of fire with Hezbollah take place, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on Tuesday "The centre of gravity is moving northward, we are near to completing our tasks in the south, but our mission here is not yet done," Gallant told troops on Israel's northern border in a video sent by his office. Gallant was attending a ground combat drill, his office said. "These…
Wednesday, 11 September 2024 04:27
What to know after Day 930 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE More Ukrainians want talks with Russia – WSJ An increasing number of Ukrainians want Kiev to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict with Moscow, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The US outlet acknowledged in an article on Tuesday that “some Ukrainians are asking a question that had until recently been taboo: Is it time to try to negotiate?”Support for talks with Russia has been “creeping upward” in Ukraine since the failure of Kiev’s much-hyped counteroffensive last year, according to the WSJ. Another poll, published by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in early August, suggested…
Tuesday, 10 September 2024 04:49
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 340
Israel's ultra-Orthodox parties help approve more funding for war Israeli lawmakers gave their initial approval on Monday to raising the 2024 budget framework to help fund reservists and assist people displaced as a result of the war in Gaza, with support coming from ultra-Orthodox parties. The vote to add 3.4 billion shekels ($906 million) to the 2024 budget passed by a 58-52 margin, the Finance Ministry said. Ultra-Orthodox parties had threatened to boycott votes in parliament in a dispute over funding for their separate education system. The bill still needs to pass two more votes to become law. The rift…