WARS
Monday, 27 November 2023 04:41
What to know after Day 641 of Russia-Ukraine war
WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Zelenskiy praises Ukrainians for battles with Russia and the weather President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday thanked Ukraine's military for fighting Russian attacks and its rescue services for tackling the consequences of extreme winter weather that he said had deprived about 400 settlements in 10 regions of power. In his nightly video address, Zelenskiy said relentless, intense battles were ongoing in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Kharkiv, while "extremely challenging weather" was affecting areas from Kyiv region in the north to Odesa in the south. In Russian-controlled territory, Oleg Kryuchkov, a senior Moscow-installed official, said nearly half a…
Sunday, 26 November 2023 04:51
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 51
Israel and Hamas complete 2nd day of swaps after tense delay, as Gaza cease-fire holds Hamas militants on Saturday released 17 hostages, including 13 Israelis, from captivity in the Gaza Strip, while Israel freed 39 Palestinian prisoners in the latest stage of a four-day cease-fire. The late-night exchange was held up for several hours after Hamas accused Israel of violating the agreement. The delay underscored the fragility of the cease-fire, which has halted a war that has shocked and shaken Israel, caused widespread destruction across the Gaza Strip, and threatened to unleash wider fighting across the region. The war erupted…
Sunday, 26 November 2023 04:50
What to know after Day 640 of Russia-Ukraine war
WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Five wounded in Kyiv by largest drone attack yet on Ukraine Ukraine's capital suffered what officials said was Russia's largest drone attack of the war on Saturday, leaving five people wounded as the rumble of air defences and explosions woke residents at sunrise after a week of intensifying attacks. Saturday's six-hour air raid, on the day Ukraine commemorates the 1932-33 Holodomor famine that killed several million people, began hitting different districts of Kyiv in the early hours, with more waves coming as the sun rose. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that over the course of the week, Russia…
Saturday, 25 November 2023 04:50
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 50
On Day One of Gaza cease-fire, Hamas and Israel carry out first swap of hostages and prisoners Hamas on Friday released 24 hostages it held captive in Gaza for weeks, and Israel freed 39 Palestinians from prison in the first stage of a swap under a four-day cease-fire that offered a small glimmer of relief to both sides. Israel — wrenched by the abduction of nearly 240 people in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war — cheered as 13 Israeli women and children emerged free from Gaza. Most were in their 70s or 80s, and the youngest was…
Saturday, 25 November 2023 04:49
What to know after Day 639 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine conflict could have ended in Spring 2022 – Kiev’s top MP Russia was ready to stop the fighting had Ukraine agreed to remain neutral, but the West advised Kiev to keep going, the head of President Vladimir Zelensky’s parliamentary faction – and the chief negotiator at the peace talks in Istanbul – David Arakhamia admitted on Friday. Arakhamia, who heads the ‘Servant of the People’ parliamentary group, told the TV channel 1+1 that Moscow had offered Kiev a peace deal in March 2022, but the Ukrainian side did not trust Russia. “Russia’s goal was to put pressure…
Friday, 24 November 2023 04:46
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 49
Qatar says Gaza cease-fire will begin Friday morning, with aid to follow 'as soon as possible' A four-day cease-fire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas was set to begin Friday morning, Qatar said after a daylong delay extended the agony for those hoping for some relief from the deal, which is to bring the release of dozens of hostages held by militants and Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. The diplomatic breakthrough promised some relief for the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza who have endured weeks of Israeli bombardment, as well as families in Israel fearful for the fate of their loved…
Friday, 24 November 2023 04:45
What to know after Day 638 of Russia-Ukraine war
WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Unrelenting Russian attacks on Avdiivka, shelling kills four in south, Ukraine says Ukrainian forces staved off unrelenting Russian attacks on the devastated eastern Ukraine city of Avdiivka on Thursday, a senior official said, and Russian shelling killed four people on the war's southern front in Kherson region. With little movement along the 1,000-km (600-mile) front line, Moscow has been focused since mid-October on capturing Avdiivka, a town noted for its vast coking plant and proximity to the Russian-held regional centre of Donetsk. Vitaliy Barabash, head of Avdiivka's military administration, said Russian forces had unleashed "the fiercest" attacks on…
Thursday, 23 November 2023 05:08
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 48
Israel unveils what it claims is a major Hamas militant hideout beneath Gaza City's Shifa Hospital The Israeli military on Wednesday unveiled what it claimed was a Hamas military facility under Gaza’s largest hospital, showing what appeared to be a subterranean dormitory to a group of foreign journalists who were given a rare glimpse inside the besieged enclave. Dozens of soldiers escorted journalists through a narrow stone tunnel — which the military said stretched 150 meters (164 yards) — to a series of underground bunkers beneath Shifa Hospital in a shattered Gaza City. The living quarters, located at the end…
Thursday, 23 November 2023 05:07
What to know after Day 637 of Russia-Ukraine war
WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine's Zelenskiy warns of 'difficult defence' in east as cold sets in Ukrainian troops face "difficult" defensive operations on parts of the eastern front with bitter winter cold setting in, but forces in the south are still conducting offensive actions, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday. Russian troops launched offensives on different sections of the front line in Ukraine's east this autumn, trying to advance on the devastated town of Avdiivka and in the northeast between the towns of Lyman and Kupiansk. "Difficult weather, difficult defence on the Lyman, Bakhmut, Donetsk and Avdiivka fronts. Offensive actions in the…
Wednesday, 22 November 2023 04:47
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 47
Israeli government debates deal for release of Gaza hostages, truce Israel's government met into the early hours of Wednesday to consider a deal for Palestinian Hamas militants to free some hostages in Gaza in exchange for a multi-day truce and the release of a greater number of Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Officials from Qatar, which has been mediating negotiations, as well as the U.S., Israel and Hamas have for days been saying a deal was imminent. Qatar Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said the proposal on a hostage release deal was delivered to Israel in the early hours of Tuesday.…
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Wednesday, 22 November 2023 04:45
What to know after Day 636 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine has lost over 13,000 troops this month – Moscow Ukraine has lost over 13,700 troops and approximately 1,800 tanks and other heavy weaponry so far this month, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu told his government colleagues on Tuesday during a ministerial meeting. Russian forces have been actively thwarting Kiev’s attempts to breach their defensive lines and continue to reduce Ukraine’s military capacity, the senior official said. He claimed that Ukrainian soldiers were surrendering in droves after realizing the futility of their counteroffensive. The minister issued his last assessment of Ukrainian casualties in late October, when he said…
Tuesday, 21 November 2023 04:34
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 46
Hamas chief says close to truce agreement with Israel The chief of Hamas told Reuters on Tuesday that the Palestinian militant group was near a truce agreement with Israel, even as the deadly assault on Gaza continued and rockets were being fired into Israel. Hamas officials are "close to reaching a truce agreement" with Israel and the group has delivered its response to Qatari mediators, Ismail Haniyeh said in a statement sent to Reuters by his aide. There were no more details about the terms of the potential agreement. U.S. President Joe Biden said on Monday he believed an accord…
Tuesday, 21 November 2023 04:33
What to know after Day 635 of Russia-Ukraine war
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine ‘concerned’ by Western push for Russia talks – security chief The government in Kiev is worried that its Western backers are calling for peace out of an irrational fear of Russia, Aleksey Danilov, the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said on Monday. Danilov spoke via video link to the annual conference of the Halifax International Security Forum, a Washington, DC-based NGO funded in part by the Canadian government. “Ukraine is concerned by the fact that discussions among certain partners have intensified regarding the need for negotiations, consultations, meetings with the Russians to discuss the…
Monday, 20 November 2023 04:38
Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 45
Israel says soldier executed, foreign hostages held at Gaza's Shifa hospital Israel stepped up accusations of Hamas abuses at the Gaza Strip's biggest hospital on Sunday, saying a captive soldier had been executed and two foreign hostages held at a site that has been a focus of its devastating six-week-old offensive. At one point a shelter for tens of thousands of Palestinian war refugees, Al Shifa Hospital has been evacuating patients and staff since Israeli troops swept in last week on what they called a mission to root out hidden Hamas facilities. Israel is also searching for some 240 people…