Kyiv says ‘managing to stabilize’ battle for Bakhmut

A lightly wounded Ukrainian serviceman arrives at an evacuation point near the front line of Bakhmut, on March 23, 2023. (AFP)
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A lightly wounded Ukrainian serviceman arrives at an evacuation point near the front line of Bakhmut, on March 23, 2023. (AFP)
A woman sits in a house yard in the town of Chasiv Yar, near Bakhmut. Bakhmut, which once had an estimated population of around 70,000 people, is now a destroyed city. (AFP)
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A woman sits in a house yard in the town of Chasiv Yar, near Bakhmut. Bakhmut, which once had an estimated population of around 70,000 people, is now a destroyed city. (AFP)
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Updated 26 March 2023

Kyiv says ‘managing to stabilize’ battle for Bakhmut

A lightly wounded Ukrainian serviceman arrives at an evacuation point near the front line of Bakhmut, on March 23, 2023. (AFP)
  • The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said Monday that his forces were in control of around 70 percent of the city

BEIJING: Ukraine said its forces were “managing to stabilize” the situation around Bakhmut, a now-destroyed city that has seen the longest battle of the Russian invasion.
Bakhmut — which once had an estimated population of around 70,000 people — has been virtually emptied of civilians over months of fierce fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.
The frontline situation is “the toughest in the Bakhmut direction,” the head of Ukraine’s armed forces Valery Zaluzhny said after a phone call with Britain’s Chief of the Defense Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin.
“Due to the tremendous efforts of the Defense Forces, we are managing to stabilize the situation,” Zaluzhny said on Facebook.
Russian forces have been posting painstakingly incremental gains around the city, whose symbolic importance surpassed any military significance as the battle dragged on.

HIGHLIGHT

Bakhmut has been virtually emptied of civilians over months of fierce fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.

According to the British Defense Ministry’s latest intelligence update on Saturday, Russia’s assault on Bakhmut “has largely stalled.”
“This is likely primarily a result of extreme attrition of the Russian forces,” the British statement read, adding that in the battle Ukraine had also “suffered heavy casualties.”
Senior Ukrainian military commander Oleksandr Syrsky said Thursday that a counter-attack could be launched soon against “exhausted” Russian forces near Bakhmut.
Syrsky’s statement came a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced he had visited Ukrainian forces near the Bakhmut frontline Wednesday.
The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said Monday that his forces were in control of around 70 percent of the city.
Meanwhile, New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has expressed concern to China over any provision of lethal aid to support Russia in its war against Ukraine during a meeting with her Chinese counterpart.
Her press office on Saturday detailed Mahuta’s cautionary remarks in Beijing, days after Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded his trip to Moscow, a warm affair in which Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin praised each other and spoke of a profound friendship.
Mahuta’s four-day trip, which began Wednesday, was the first made by a New Zealand foreign minister to Beijing since 2018 but it came at an awkward time as Xi visited Moscow the same week to give Putin a diplomatic boost after the International Criminal Court said it wants to put him on trial for alleged war crimes.
On the Ukraine war, Mahuta reiterated her government’s condemnation of Moscow’s “illegal invasion” to her counterpart Qin Gang.

 


9 injured in shooting near beach in Hollywood, Florida

9 injured in shooting near beach in Hollywood, Florida
Updated 14 sec ago

9 injured in shooting near beach in Hollywood, Florida

9 injured in shooting near beach in Hollywood, Florida
HOLLYWOOD, Florida: Nine people were injured Monday evening when gunfire erupted along a beachside promenade in Hollywood, Florida, sending people frantically running for cover along the crowded beach on Memorial Day.
Several of the wounded were taken to a children’s hospital, police spokesperson Deanna Bettineschi said.
The nine people hurt included six adults and three children, according to Yanet Obarrio Sanchez, a spokesperson for Memorial Healthcare System. All of the victims were in stable condition, she said.
Bettineschi said four children between the ages of 1 and 17 were hit, along with five adults between 25 and 65. One was in surgery late Monday while the others were stable, she said. It was not immediately clear if the hospital was counting a 17-year-old as an adult.
Bettineschi said the shooting happened shortly before 7 p.m. A fight broke out, at least one gun was pulled and shots were fired. At least one person was in custody, but police were looking for more suspects.
Police Chief Chris O’Brien said thousands of people were in the area and dozens of police officers responded, including some who were nearby.
“It’s unfortunate we have law-abiding citizens who come to our beaches and that gets interrupted by a group of criminals,” he said.
The shooting happened on the Hollywood Oceanfront Broadwalk near a convenience store, a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream store and a Subway sandwich shop.
Alvie Carlton Scott III said he was on the beach when he suddenly heard numerous gunshots. He said he hid behind a tree and then fled the area after a police officer told people to run.
Jamie Ward, who was also on the broadwalk, said several young men were fighting in front of the stores when one pulled a gun and started shooting.
Videos posted on Twitter on Monday evening showed emergency medical crews responding and providing aid to multiple injured people.
Police said there would be a heavy presence of officers as the investigation continues. Officials also set up an area for family members to reunite.
“Thank you to the good samaritans, paramedics, police and emergency room doctors and nurses for their immediate response to aid the victims of today’s shooting,” Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy said in a statement.
Hollywood Beach is a popular beach destination about 11 miles (17 kilometers) south of Fort Lauderdale and 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Miami. The beach was expected to see more visitors than usual because of the Memorial Day holiday.

North Korea confirms June launch of military spy satellite

North Korea confirms June launch of military spy satellite
Updated 2 min 44 sec ago

North Korea confirms June launch of military spy satellite

North Korea confirms June launch of military spy satellite
  • Announcement came a day after Japan said it was informed by North Korea that a satellite launch could happen imminently

SEOUL: North Korea said Tuesday that it would launch a spy satellite in June, claiming it was necessary to monitor the “dangerous” military movements of the United States and its allies.
Criticizing US-South Korea joint military exercises, including the ongoing large-scale live-fire drills, a top North Korean military official confirmed that “military reconnaissance satellite No. 1” would be launched next month.
The announcement came a day after Japan said it was informed by North Korea that a satellite launch could happen imminently, with Tokyo warning it would likely violate United Nations sanctions.
Satellite launch technology overlaps significantly with that used in ballistic missiles, which Pyongyang is explicitly prohibited from using under UN sanctions.
The official Korean Central News Agency cited Ri Pyong Chol, vice-chairman of the ruling party’s central military commission, saying the satellite was “indispensable to tracking, monitoring... and coping with in advance in real time the dangerous military acts of the US and its vassal forces.”
Citing “reckless” acts by Washington and Seoul, Ri said North Korea felt “the need to expand reconnaissance and information means and improve various defensive and offensive weapons.”
The official also accused the United States of conducting “hostile air espionage activities on the Korean peninsula and in its vicinity,” according to the KCNA dispatch.
Pyongyang, which typically does not give advanced warning of missile launches, has been known to inform international bodies of purportedly peaceful satellite launch plans.
It told Japan Monday it would launch a rocket between May 31 and June 11.
“Even if it’s described as a satellite, a launch using ballistic missile technology would be a violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions” and would threaten people’s safety, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said.
In 2012 and 2016, Pyongyang tested ballistic missiles that it called satellite launches. Both flew over Japan’s southern Okinawa region.
“North Korea is giving justification and legitimacy to the upcoming launch of a military reconnaissance satellite, by blaming the ongoing US-South Korea joint drills,” Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, told AFP.
He said that although satellites and ballistic missiles differ in their missions, the technology was effectively identical.
“If North Korea launches a satellite, it will be a violation of UN security resolutions, as it bans all launches using ballistic missile technology.”
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this month inspected the country’s first military spy satellite as it was prepared for launch, and gave the green light for its “future action plan.”
In 2021, Kim had identified the development of such satellites as a key defense project for the North Korean military.
Japan’s defense ministry issued an order to shoot down any ballistic missile confirmed to be on course to fall into its territory.
South Korea’s foreign ministry condemned the launch plan, saying the “so-called ‘satellite launch’ is a serious violation of UN Security Council resolutions banning all launches using ballistic missile technology.”
South Korea and Japan have been working to mend long-frayed ties, including through greater cooperation on North Korea’s military threats.


China rejects US request for a meeting between defense chiefs -WSJ

China rejects US request for a meeting between defense chiefs -WSJ
Updated 30 May 2023

China rejects US request for a meeting between defense chiefs -WSJ

China rejects US request for a meeting between defense chiefs -WSJ
  • Kirby said there was the possibility of a meeting between US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and her Chinese counterpart during the Asia-Pacific-Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Detroit

WASHINGTON: China has rejected a request by the United States for a meeting between their defense chiefs on the sidelines of an annual security forum in Singapore this coming weekend, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
“Overnight, the PRC informed the US that they have declined our early May invitation for Secretary (Lloyd) Austin to meet with PRC Minister of National Defense Li Shangfu in Singapore this week,” the Pentagon said in a statement to the Journal, adding the department believes in open communication “to ensure that competition does not veer into conflict.”
Last week, White House spokesman John Kirby said there were discussions by the Defense Department to get a conversation going between Lloyd and his Chinese counterpart.
Kirby also said there was the possibility of a meeting between US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and her Chinese counterpart during the Asia-Pacific-Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Detroit.

 

 


NATO soldiers injured in Kosovo clashes with Serb protesters

NATO soldiers injured in Kosovo clashes with Serb protesters
Updated 29 May 2023

NATO soldiers injured in Kosovo clashes with Serb protesters

NATO soldiers injured in Kosovo clashes with Serb protesters
  • KFOR: ‘Several soldiers of the Italian and Hungarian KFOR contingent were the subject of unprovoked attacks and sustained trauma wounds with fractures and burns’
  • Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that 52 Serbs were injured, three of them seriously

LEPOSAVIC, Kosovo: Around 25 NATO peacekeeping soldiers defending three town halls in northern Kosovo were injured in clashes with Serb protesters on Monday, while Serbia’s president put the army on the highest level of combat alert.
KFOR, the NATO-led peacekeeping mission to Kosovo, condemned the violence.
“While countering the most active fringes of the crowd, several soldiers of the Italian and Hungarian KFOR contingent were the subject of unprovoked attacks and sustained trauma wounds with fractures and burns due to the explosion of incendiary devices,” it said in a statement.
Hungary’s defense minister Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky said that 7 Hungarian soldiers were seriously injured and that they will be taken to Hungary for treatment. He said 20 soldiers were injured. Italian soldiers were also injured in clashes.
“What is happening is absolutely unacceptable and irresponsible,” Italy’s Giorgia Meloni said in a statement. “It is vital to avoid further unilateral actions on the part of the Kosovar authorities and that all the parties in question immediately take a step back to ease the tensions.”
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that 52 Serbs were injured, three of them seriously.
Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani accused Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic of destabilising Kosovo.
“Serb illegal structures turned into criminal gangs have attacked Kosovo police, KFOR (peacekeeping) officers & journalists. Those who carry out Vucic’s orders to destabilize the north of Kosovo, must face justice,” Osmani tweeted.
Vucic accused Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti of creating tensions. He called on Serbs in Kosovo to avoid clashes with NATO soldiers.
The tense situation developed after ethnic Albanian mayors took office in northern Kosovo’s Serb majority area after elections the Serbs boycotted — a move that led the US and its allies to rebuke Pristina on Friday.
In Zvecan, one of the towns, Kosovo police — staffed by ethnic Albanians after Serbs quit the force last year — sprayed pepper gas to repel a crowd of Serbs who broke through a security barricade and tried to force their way into the municipality building, witnesses said.
Serb protesters in Zvecan threw tear gas and stun grenades at NATO soldiers. Serbs also clashed with police in Zvecan and spray-painted NATO vehicles with the letter “Z,” referring to a Russian sign used in war in Ukraine.
In Leposavic, close to the border with Serbia, US peacekeeping troops in riot gear placed barbed wire around the town hall to protect it from hundreds of angry Serbs.
Later in the day protesters threw eggs at a parked car belonging to the new Leposavic mayor.
Vucic, who is the commander-in-chief of the Serbian armed forces, raised the army’s combat readiness to the highest level, Defense Minister Milos Vucevic told reporters.
“This implies that immediately before 2:00 p.m. (1200 GMT), the Serbian Armed Forces’ Chief of the General Staff issued additional instructions for the deployment of the army’s units in specific, designated positions,” Vucevic said, without elaborating.
NATO peacekeepers also blocked off the town hall in Zubin Potok to protect it from angry local Serbs, witnesses said.
Igor Simic, deputy head of the Serb List, the biggest Belgrade-backed Kosovo Serb party, accused Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti of fueling tensions in the north.
“We are interested in peace. Albanians who live here are interested in peace, and only he (Kurti) wants to make chaos,” Simic told reporters in Zvecan.
Serbs, who comprise a majority in Kosovo’s north, have never accepted its 2008 declaration of independence from Serbia and still see Belgrade as their capital more than two decades after the Kosovo Albanian uprising against repressive Serbian rule.
Ethnic Albanians make up more than 90 percent of the population in Kosovo as a whole, but northern Serbs have long demanded the implementation of an EU-brokered 2013 deal for the creation of an association of autonomous municipalities in their area.
Serbs refused to take part in local elections in April and ethnic Albanian candidates won the mayoralties in four Serb-majority municipalities — including North Mitrovica, where no incidents were reported on Monday — with a 3.5 percent turnout.
Serbs demand that the Kosovo government remove ethnic Albanian mayors from town halls and allow local administrations financed by Belgrade resume their work.
On Friday, three out of the four ethnic Albanian mayors were escorted into their offices by police, who were pelted with rocks and responded with tear gas and water cannon to disperse the protesters.
The United States and its allies, which have strongly backed Kosovo’s independence, rebuked Pristina on Friday, saying imposing mayors in Serb-majority areas without popular support undercut efforts to normalize relations.
Kurti defended Pristina’s position, tweeting after a weekend phone call with the European Union’s foreign policy chief: “Emphasized that elected mayors will provide services to all citizens.”
Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic told RTS it was “not possible to have mayors who have not been elected by Serbs in Serb-majority municipalities.”
After meeting Kurti, US ambassador to Kosovo Jeffrey Hovenier told reporters: “We are concerned about reports today about violence against official property.”
“We’ve seen pictures of graffiti against KFOR cars and police cars, we’ve heard about attacks on journalists, we condemn that, that is not appropriate response.”


Rohingya remain ‘top priority’ for OIC as chief visits refugee camp in Bangladesh

Rohingya remain ‘top priority’ for OIC as chief visits refugee camp in Bangladesh
Updated 29 May 2023

Rohingya remain ‘top priority’ for OIC as chief visits refugee camp in Bangladesh

Rohingya remain ‘top priority’ for OIC as chief visits refugee camp in Bangladesh
  • OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha in Bangladesh until May 31
  • Islamic body been leading advocacy for Rohingya, says nation’s FM

DHAKA: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which has said that the Rohingya remain a top priority for the body, saw its chief official visit the refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar on Monday as part of a five-day trip to the country.

OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha arrived in Bangladesh on Saturday and met with the country’s top officials, including Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The Rohingya situation was discussed in Taha’s meetings with Bangladeshi officials, as the South Asian nation is hosting more than 1 million refugees from the persecuted minority, most of whom fled from Myanmar’s Rakhine State in 2017 to escape a deadly military crackdown.

“(The) Rohingya is one of the top priority issues for (the) OIC … These Rohingya people are suffering. They deserve peace, security and a better life,” Taha told reporters after meeting Bangladesh’s Foreign Affairs Minister A.K. Abdul Momen on Sunday.

The OIC chief also called on the organization’s member states to support Gambia’s case at the International Court of Justice, which alleges that Myanmar has violated the Genocide Convention with its actions against the Rohingya in Rakhine State.

During his meeting with Hasina, Taha thanked the Bangladeshi government and people “for their relentless efforts to provide shelters, protection, hospitality, and necessary assistance to Rohingya refugees,” the OIC said in a statement.

Bangladesh is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention, and has spent an estimated $1.2 billion a year to support the refugees.

“For a long time, we have had them (the OIC) beside us on the Rohingya issue. They have taken a leading role in removing the plight of the Rohingya,” Momen told reporters.

Bangladesh’s Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mizanur Rahman said Taha spoke with members of the Rohingya community in Cox’s Bazar during his visit on Monday.

“(The) OIC secretary-general exchanged views with the Rohingya and listened to their plight,” he said. “Taha promised to do the best on (the) OIC’s part to resolve the Rohingya crisis.”

Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are facing compounding issues, including a further decrease of their rations from the World Food Programme, which said a lack of funding has forced it to cut food aid per person from $10 to $8 a month starting June 1.