Russian air attacks kill four in Kharkiv, injure six in Kyiv

Russian air attacks kill four in Kharkiv, injure six in Kyiv
The attack followed a Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv late on Monday that shattered much of the Derzhprom building. (File/AFP)
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Updated 29 October 2024
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Russian air attacks kill four in Kharkiv, injure six in Kyiv

Russian air attacks kill four in Kharkiv, injure six in Kyiv

KYIV: At least four people were killed and another six injured in Russia’s multi-wave overnight attacks on Ukraine’s two largest cities of Kharkiv and Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said on Tuesday.
Russia attacks Ukrainian regions almost every night with drones and the Ukrainian military reported that last night they shot down 26 out of 48 drones launched.
Four people were killed in Kharkiv after midnight on Tuesday in Russia’s bombardment of the city’s Osnovianskyi district, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on his Telegram messaging channel.
A local emergency service published a video showing rescuers removing the rubble of the completely destroyed building under floodlights and carrying a black bag in which the bodies of the dead are usually placed.
That attack followed a Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv late on Monday that shattered much of the Derzhprom building, one of the most celebrated landmarks in the city, dating from the 1920s.
In Kyiv, falling debris from a destroyed Russian drone injured six people and set a residential building on fire, the mayor of the Ukrainian capital said.
One of the people injured by debris in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi district was taken to hospital, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on his Telegram channel. He said several cars were also on fire.
A Reuters witness saw smoke rising over the district’s residential area, which is located in Kyiv’s west. Photos posted by Kyiv’s military administration on its Telegram channel showed a residential building and nearby cars burning in the dark.
The administration said Ukraine’s air defense units were trying to repel a Russian drone attack on the city and that drone debris fell also onto the Sviatoshynskyi district in Kyiv’s west, but there was no immediate reports of damage.
The size of the Russian overnight attack was not immediately clear. There was no immediate comment from Russia about the attacks.
Moscow denies targeting civilians in the war sparked by its invasion of its neighbor Ukraine in February 2022.
The 2-1/2-year war has killed thousands of people, the vast majority of them Ukrainians and has turned cities and villages into piles of rubble.


EU and South America countries conclude Mercosur trade deal

EU and South America countries conclude Mercosur trade deal
Updated 34 sec ago
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EU and South America countries conclude Mercosur trade deal

EU and South America countries conclude Mercosur trade deal
MONTEVIDEO: The EU and four South American countries have concluded a huge, but controversial trade deal that is opposed by France and many European farmers, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen announced on Friday.
“This is a win-win agreement,” von der Leyen said in Uruguay, where she was attending a summit of the Mercosur bloc involved in the deal, which also includes Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.
The agreement would create a sprawling free-trade zone of more than 700 million people.
She called the agreement — nearly a quarter of a century in the making — “a truly historic milestone” that builds trade bridges at a time when “strong winds are blowing in the opposite direction, toward isolation and fragmentation.”
But the European farmers’ group COPA-COGECA immediately reiterated its opposition to the agreement and called for a “flash” protest in Brussels on Monday.
EU countries and the European Parliament “must now firmly challenge the terms of this agreement,” the umbrella organization said.
While negotiations have concluded, the EU-Mercosur deal still needs to be greenlit by at least 15 of the European Union’s 27 member nations representing 65 percent of the EU population, as well as the European Parliament.
France, which has been rocked by successive protests by farmers saying the agreement would bring unfair competition, has tried to forge a blocking minority of EU countries.
Poland has rallied to France’s side, and Italian government sources say Rome believes “the conditions are not met” to back the deal. The Netherlands and Austria have also expressed reservations.
France’s minister for trade, Sophie Primas, said that von der Leyen’s announcement “regards only her.”
“Today is not the end of the story.... This only commits the commission, not the (EU) member states,” she said in a statement to AFP.
But Germany, desperate to open more trade opportunities amid gloom for its manufacturing sector, had strongly come out in favor of the EU-Mercosur deal, as had Spain.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz reacted to the announcement from von der Leyen — a former German defense minister — by saying on X that “an important hurdle” had been overcome.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hailed a “historic agreement with Mercosur to establish an unprecedented economic bridge between Europe and Latin America.”
The broad outlines of a deal were agreed back in 2019 but it was never ratified amid concerns over the impact of Brazilian farming on climate change, among other factors.
Von der Leyen nodded to that preoccupation, saying: “The EU-Mercosur agreement reflects our steadfast commitment to the Paris Agreement (on fighting climate change) and to the fight against deforestation.”
She said efforts being made by the government of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to protect the Amazon “are welcome, and they are necessary — but preserving the Amazon is a shared responsibility of all humanity.”
She also singled out European farmers, telling them: “We have heard you, listened to your concerns, and we are acting on them. This agreement includes robust safeguards to protect your livelihoods.”
The deal, once ratified, would allow the EU to export cars, machinery and pharmaceutical products more easily to South America.
In return, Brazil and its neighbors would be able to sell meat, sugar, rice, honey, soybeans and other products to Europe with fewer restrictions.
The treaty aims to eliminate most import taxes between the EU and Mercosur to create a vast free-trade area of more than 700 million consumers.
Sources familiar with the negotiations told AFP the deal would include changes to “several chapters,” including government contracts, services, intellectual property and the environment.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday had repeated a warning to von der Leyen that the agreement was “unacceptable in its current state.”

UK warns of possible terror attacks in Bangladesh

UK warns of possible terror attacks in Bangladesh
Updated 18 min 44 sec ago
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UK warns of possible terror attacks in Bangladesh

UK warns of possible terror attacks in Bangladesh
  • Foreign Office warns against ‘all but essential travel’ to South Asian country amid political turmoil
  • Large public gatherings, religious sites, political rallies cited as areas of concern

LONDON: The UK has warned travelers to Bangladesh that “terrorists are likely to try to carry out attacks” in the South Asian country.

In an update to its official travel guidance, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office cautioned against “all but essential travel” to Bangladesh, highlighting large public gatherings, religious sites and political rallies as areas of concern.

“Some groups have targeted people who they consider to have views and lifestyles contrary to Islam,” the FCDO said.

The warnings come as Bangladesh continues to experience violence and political turmoil following the collapse of the government of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Aug. 5 amid nationwide protests.

The country has subsequently seen attacks, including with improvised explosive devices, against minority groups and the police. 

The FCDO warned that authorities may use security threats to justify imposing extreme restrictions on movement without warning.


Prince William to attend Notre Dame cathedral reopening

Prince William to attend Notre Dame cathedral reopening
Updated 54 min 24 sec ago
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Prince William to attend Notre Dame cathedral reopening

Prince William to attend Notre Dame cathedral reopening
  • “The Prince of Wales will travel to Paris tomorrow to attend the ceremony,” the palace
  • Around 50 heads of state and government are expected in the French capital

LONDON: The UK’s Prince William will attend Saturday’s re-opening of Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, Kensington Palace said on Friday, but his wife, Catherine, will not accompany him.
“The Prince of Wales will travel to Paris tomorrow to attend the ceremony marking the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral,” the palace said in a statement.
“His Royal Highness is traveling at the request of His Majesty’s Government on behalf of the United Kingdom,” it added.
Around 50 heads of state and government are expected in the French capital for the ceremony. US president-elect Donald Trump is also to attend.
Buckingham Palace did not immediately reply to an AFP request on whether King Charles III would attend. Kensington Palace said that Catherine would not be in Paris.
Charles, who is the head of the Church of England, is currently undergoing treatment for cancer. Catherine, also known as Kate, has gradually begun resuming public engagements after also being diagnosed with cancer earlier this year.
Charles’s wife, Queen Camilla, recently fell ill with pneumonia and has had to cancel some of her appearances.
France last week showed off to the world the gleaming restored interior of the 850-year-old mediaeval cathedral, which was hit by a huge fire in 2019.


Putin appoints new governor to manage Kursk ‘crisis’

Putin appoints new governor to manage Kursk ‘crisis’
Updated 06 December 2024
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Putin appoints new governor to manage Kursk ‘crisis’

Putin appoints new governor to manage Kursk ‘crisis’
  • Ukrainian troops launched a shock offensive into Kursk in August, forcing thousands to flee border areas
  • Putin appointed Alexander Khinshtein — a prominent pro-Kremlin lawmaker — as acting Kursk governor late on Thursday

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin has replaced the governor of the Kursk region — partly controlled by Ukraine — saying it needs a “crisis” manager, after residents voiced anger at the handling of the incursion.
Ukrainian troops launched a shock offensive into Kursk in August, forcing thousands to flee border areas. Ukraine’s army said in November it controls 800 square kilometers (310 square miles) of territory in the region.
Putin appointed Alexander Khinshtein — a prominent pro-Kremlin lawmaker — as acting Kursk governor late on Thursday.
“There is a need for crisis management there,” Putin said in a meeting with Khinshtein.
“The most important thing is to organize work on helping people,” he added.
Acknowledging communications failures, Khinshtein told Putin: “We have to do all we can so that all residents of Kursk region fully feel that they are part of our one big country.”
The previous regional chief, Alexei Smirnov, became acting governor in May and was inaugurated in September. He left voluntarily, according to the Kremlin and wrote on Telegram he has a new post.
Smirnov had drawn criticism over his appearances at televised meetings after the incursion, appearing formulaic and lacking a personal touch.
Putin considers Khinshtein “can better deal with this role,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, denying there was any “grievances” against Smirnov.
Since August, Kursk locals have taken to social media to voice anger at the lack of warnings over the incursion and the handling of the crisis.
Some have created video messages to Putin pleading for help, though discontent is rarely shown on official media.
Some residents of Olgovka, about 17 kilometers (10 miles) from the border, said their village looks “like a scene from a horror film” and “we have found ourselves homeless.”
“Some of our fellow villagers were killed, some are missing, since evacuation was not announced and some did not have time to leave,” a village spokesman said.
At a public meeting last month, former Kursk governor Roman Starovoit, now transport minister, acknowledged the Russian military had looted in a district under their control, after official media blamed Ukrainians.
Starovoit told a Life News journalist Friday: “I hope (Khinshtein) will have enough experience to organize communications, first and foremost,” calling it a “shortcoming” of the ousted Smirnov.


Five dead, seven missing in Indonesia floods, landslides

Five dead, seven missing in Indonesia floods, landslides
Updated 06 December 2024
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Five dead, seven missing in Indonesia floods, landslides

Five dead, seven missing in Indonesia floods, landslides
  • Intense rains triggered flash floods and landslides in the Sukabumi district
  • BNPB chief Suharyanto instructed rescuers to optimize the search operation for those missing

JAKARTA: Flash floods and landslides struck Indonesia’s main Java island earlier this week, killing at least five people, the national disaster agency said Friday, as rescuers race to find seven others still missing.
Intense rains triggered flash floods and landslides in the Sukabumi district in West Java province on Tuesday, destroying at least 10 bridges and damaging hundreds of houses.
“As of Friday at 09:00 (0200 GMT), it was reported that the number of fatalities had increased to five people in total,” Abdul Muhari, the spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), said in a statement Friday.
“Aside from that, seven people remained missing.”
He added that efforts to build a temporary bridge to open access to affected areas are ongoing.
BNPB chief Suharyanto — who goes by one name — instructed rescuers to optimize the search operation for those missing, noting that rescuers have a seven-day “golden time” to find them.
“If necessary to use heavy equipment, please do so,” urged Suharyanto in a statement.
Indonesia has suffered from a string of recent extreme weather events, which experts say are made more likely by climate change.
Last month, heavy downpour triggered landslides and flash floods in Sumatra Island, killing at leaast 27 people.
In May, at least 67 people died after a mixture of ash, sand and pebbles carried down from the eruption of Mount Marapi in West Sumatra washed into residential areas, causing flash floods.