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Russia conducts largest missile strike on Ukraine capital in weeks

Russia Ukraine War

The air force announced its defences shot down all the inbound missiles that were fired after a 44-day pause in such attacks on the Ukrainian capital. The damage appeared to have been caused by falling debris.

“Every day and every night there is such terror. The world’s unity can stop it when it helps us with air defence systems. Now we need this defence here in Ukraine,” President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

City and regional officials said at least 13 people were injured in different parts of Kyiv and four more in the surrounding region. An 11-year-old girl was among four people taken to hospital, city officials added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Kyiv last week of launching attacks to disrupt the Russian presidential election that handed him six more years in power. The Kremlin leader warned Ukraine would be punished for that.

Russia, which denies targeting civilians, invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, and has launched thousands of missiles and drones on Ukrainian cities and villages in attacks that have killed hundreds of civilians.

The Ukrainian military has reported Russia launched over 8,000 missiles on Ukraine in the first two years of the war.

Air raid sirens, which warn Ukrainians to take shelter, have sounded in the capital more than 1,020 times since the start of the war, the Ukrainian military said.

The capital was under an air raid alert for nearly three hours on Thursday morning.

The Russian military used strategic bombers and also launched some missiles from its territory, Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said. The missiles targeted Kyiv from different directions, he added.

Kyiv city officials said that several kindergartens and schools, residential buildings and industrial sites were damaged by debris from downed Russian missiles across the city.

In the region, at least 40 private houses and two multi-storey buildings were damaged, regional officials said.

“Russia spent $390 million on today’s missile attack on Kyiv,” Agiya Zagrebelska, head of sanctions policy at the National Agency on Corruption Prevention, told Reuters.

“This is less than 1% of the amount of taxes paid by international companies to the Russian budget since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.”

685 medical workers killed in Gaza by Israel: WHO

Gaza War

WHO said it has documented 410 Israeli attacks on Gaza’s healthcare sector since the regime’s genocidal war started on October 7.

According to the world body’s latest figures, the regime’s attacks have left 685 people dead and 902 others injured.

Israel’s strikes have also damaged 99 healthcare facilities and 104 ambulances across Gaza.

It added that two-fifths of Israeli attacks took place in Gaza City, a quarter of them in north Gaza, and another quarter in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.

Attacks have resulted in 685 fatalities, 902 injuries, damage to 99 facilities and affected 104 ambulances,” the UN agency said on X on Wednesday.

“Two-fifths (38%) of attacks were in Gaza City, a quarter (23%) in North Gaza, and over a quarter (28%) in Khan Younis,” it added.

Emphasizing that the healthcare sector should not be a target in armed conflicts, the World Health Organization urged the Israeli regime to respect international law, which calls for active protection of civilians and healthcare facilities.

Earlier, the WHO has also issued a dire warning, saying that a growing number of children in Gaza are teetering on the edge of death due to severe hunger.

Margaret Harris, a representative from the WHO, shared distressing observations from the ground, saying that, ““What doctors and medical staff are telling us is more and more they are seeing the effects of starvation; they’re seeing newborn babies simply dying because they [are] too low birth weight.”

Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Harris emphasized the urgent need for nutritional intervention to save these young lives.

The United Nations has warned that Israel could be using starvation as a weapon in its genocidal war against Gaza by blocking the desperately needed aid into the war-battered strip.

The UN said Tuesday that Israel’s severe restrictions on aid into war-ravaged Gaza coupled with its military offensive could amount to using starvation as a “weapon of war,” which would be a “war crime.”

Israel launched the war against Gaza on October 7. Since the beginning of the war, the regime has killed more than 31,900 Gazans, most of them women, children, and adolescents.

In response, resistance movements from Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen have been carrying out military operations against the Tel Aviv regime and its interests in the region.

Iranian snooker sensation: Vafai’s triumph over world no. 1 stuns audience

Hossein Vafaei

In a thrilling round of 16 encounter, Vafai clinched a nail-biting 5-4 win, securing his spot in the quarter-finals.

Vafai’s remarkable journey continues as he prepares to face the winner of the match between “Ding” from China and “Murphy” from England.

The Iranian national snooker player’s meteoric rise in the rankings has been nothing short of spectacular, catapulting him into the top 16 after defeating the formidable O’Sullivan.

The match witnessed incredible drama as Vafai found himself on the brink of defeat in the final frame, only for a rare mistake from O’Sullivan coupled with Vafai’s own tenacity and opportunism to turn the tables, sealing an unforgettable victory.

As Vafai advances further in the tournament, he carries the hopes and dreams of a nation, proving that in the world of snooker, anything is possible.

Donors warn Biden’s Gaza policy ‘increasing chances’ of Trump victory

Joe Biden

The letter, reported by The New York Times, says that Israel’s current military campaign in Gaza, in which Israeli forces have killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, is failing to achieve its own stated goals of eliminating the Palestinian group Hamas and freeing the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

“As donors and activists, we have committed much time and treasure in helping increase the turnout of likely Biden voters, particularly among young voters and voters of color,” the letter states.

“Many of these voters are now questioning whether the Democratic Party shares their values. If they stay home or vote for a third-party candidate, there is the very real danger that President Biden will be defeated in November.”

The letter goes on to say how the election of Donald Trump in November would be “a disaster for our country” and that the signatories “fear that the Gaza war is increasing the chances of that occurring”.

“Because of the disillusionment of a critical portion of the Democratic coalition, the Gaza war is increasing the chances of a Trump victory.”

According to The New York Times, among the letter’s signatories are several individuals who gave six-figure donations to Biden’s presidential campaigns in 2020 and 2024.

A handful have also given more than $1m to Biden’s campaigns, the newspaper reported.

Israel’s war on Gaza began on 7 October, when Hamas led a surprise attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking at least 250 hostages back to the enclave.

In response, Israel declared war, launching a military operation that began with an indiscriminate bombing campaign followed by a ground invasion of Gaza.

So far, Israeli forces have killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, laid siege to and attacked hospitals, targeted other civilian infrastructure, including schools and mosques, and attacked medical workers.

Since the beginning of the war, Biden declared his full-fledged support to Israel, also visiting Israel.

He has also been calling for an additional $14.3bn in military aid to Israel, and has bypassed congressional authority to fast-track weapons to the country.

“Regrettably, President Biden has provided what appears to be unconditional support for the Israeli operation,” the letter states.

“The Biden administration has been providing armaments, including 2,000-pound bombs which have been used to flatten entire civilian neighborhoods, causing massive casualties with a high ratio of women and children.”

The president’s stance comes at odds with many voters in his base, who favour an end to the war. Two-thirds of US voters support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, according to a poll conducted by Data for Progress.

And a smaller but significant number, 35 percent, believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, according to a YouGov poll.

“We are asking the Biden administration immediately to change course,” the letter said.

“Conditions need to be placed and monitored on any further military, financial, or diplomatic aid. All indiscriminate bombing and demolition must stop.”

However, it is unclear whether the letter for Biden would sway the president from changing course on his policy on Gaza.

On Tuesday, the League of Conservation Voters, a leading climate organisation, said it would put $120m towards Biden’s presidential reelection bid, and outside of independent groups, Biden’s campaign says it expects to raise and spend more than $2bn on its campaign.

Iranian actress Yekta Nasser alleges domestic abuse, child kidnapping in emotional video

Yekta Nasser

Adding to the turmoil, Nasser claims that her former spouse, Manouchehr Hadi, has abducted their daughter.

In response to Nasser’s claims, Manouchehr Hadi, a prominent actor and director, has refuted the accusations. Stating that he obtained custody through legal means. Hadi asserts that he is acting in accordance with court orders and parental agreements.

He further vows to challenge Nasser’s allegations in court and file for defamation for her former “wife’s falsehoods.”

Amidst the unfolding saga, a Judiciary-affiliated news agency has shed light on the current status of the situation. According to Mizan News Agency, contrary to allegations of abduction, there are custody arrangements in place.

It further added that Nasser’s assertion holds that she currently retains custody, with the father granted supervised visitation rights as per the interim decree of the family court.

It said: “Considering the tender age of their seven-year-old daughter, Nasser’s claim of securing a temporary court order in this regard adds weight to her stance. Should Nasser’s claims prove accurate, any discrepancies in the scheduled handover of the child will be addressed in accordance with legal protocols.”

UK says its forces won’t ‘fight side by side’ with Ukrainians against Russia

Rishi Sunak

The comment came after French President Emmanuel Macron said he would not rule out an eventual presence of NATO troops on Ukrainian soil, as the conflict between Kiev and Moscow continues.

The French leader initially floated the idea in late February and later doubled down, describing Russia as an “adversary.” He denied that Paris was “waging a war” against Moscow, however.

Following Macron’s statements, Le Monde reported that France had been contemplating the idea of deploying troops since at least June 2023.

The head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergey Naryshkin, said on Tuesday that Paris is preparing to send around 2,000 soldiers to Ukraine.

London has no such plans, a spokesman for UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s office told TASS news agency on Wednesday. British soldiers will not “fight side by side” with Ukrainians, the official stated, adding that the government has ruled out a “full-blown military deployment.”

The UK government told reporters last month that it would not send additional troops “beyond the small number of personnel we do have in the country supporting the armed forces of Ukraine.”

Commenting on a potential NATO deployment to Ukraine earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that this would be “one step shy of a full-scale World War III.”

NATO member states have also said they have no plans to send troops to Ukraine. The US-led bloc has maintained that it does not wish to become a party to the conflict, but will continue to support Kiev with arms and money for “as long as it takes.”

Russia has warned that the delivery of Western weapons already makes NATO countries de facto participants in the conflict and risks further escalation. Putin said last month that Moscow has no intention of attacking NATO members, unless it is attacked first.

Germany says not to let Putin dictate peace terms in Ukraine

Olaf Scholz

Speaking to lawmakers in Berlin on Wednesday, Scholz insisted Germany “will not accept a dictated peace at the expense of Ukraine.”

“Law is stronger than violence,” the chancellor said, claiming that Putin had sought to violate that principle with the launch of Russia’s military operation against Ukraine in February 2022.

“We will not let him get away with this,” he added.

Scholz insisted that Germany’s backing of Ukraine will not decrease, and that expecting otherwise would be a “miscalculation.”

He reiterated his criticism of Putin’s reelection last weekend for a fifth term as president, stating it showed that “Russia is not strong.”

However, as EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell acknowledged in an interview on Wednesday, European allies will be hard-pressed to fill the funding gap if Kiev’s biggest backer, Washington, reduces its support. US President Joe Biden’s administration ran out of funding for Ukraine in January and has struggled to secure congressional approval for over $60 billion in additional military and financial aid.

Scholz made his comments ahead of an EU summit scheduled to begin on Thursday in Brussels. Major topics of discussion will include efforts to ramp up aid to Ukraine, as well as the bloc’s response to the Israel-Hamas war. Russian forces have made battlefield gains in recent weeks, and US defense chief Lloyd Austin warned on Tuesday that Ukraine’s very survival will be at risk if the West fails to provide more weapons to Kiev.

Even as he lobbies allies for more Ukraine aid, Scholz has resisted political pressure to provide Kiev with long-range Taurus missiles, saying that such an escalation could draw Germany into a direct conflict with Russia. Speaking at the Bundestag on Wednesday, he told lawmakers that debate within Germany over the Taurus issue is “nothing short of ridiculous”. He added that the controversy isn’t well understood outside of Germany, describing it as “embarrassing for us as a country”.

Water level in Lake Urmia has improved after recent rainfalls

Lake Urmia

As the video shows, the water level of Urmia has reached 47cm and recreational boats are on the lake again.

Lake Urmia was once the world’s 6th saltwater lake and the biggest of its kind in West Asia, but due to unsustainable water consumption by farmers in the region and climate change it is feared that the lake will be drying up.

Efforts by Iranian officials during the past decades to fully revive the lake have so far failed.

Iran seeking to reclaim artifacts looted from Jiroft

The Chargé d’Affaires of the Iranian Embassy in London, Seyyed Mehdi Hosseini Matin, told Iran’s IRNA news agency that the country is following up on the case to reclaim some of the items stolen from Jiroft.

18 historical artefacts, including jars, bowls, and cups, dating back to 3000 BC, were stolen during illegal excavations between 2000 and 2004 from a historical site in Halil Roud valley in Jiroft, and were taken abroad.

Hosseini Matin said, “There are still items taken out of the country many years ago and are offered in the auctions of ancient and cultural objects in England from time to time.”

Historically, Jiroft, in Kerman Province, is one of the richest areas in the world. Ruins and artifacts dating back to about five thousand years ago have been unearthed in the region.

Senate Democrats urge ‘bold’ US push on Palestinian state

White House

The letter sent on Wednesday to Biden comes days after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the country’s highest-ranking Jewish elected leader and longtime advocate for Israel, sent shock waves with a speech criticising Netanyahu’s conduct of the Gaza war and urging new Israeli elections.

Nineteen Democratic senators led by Tom Carper, a longtime ally of Biden from his home state of Delaware, wrote that the Middle East crisis had “reached an inflection point” that required US leadership beyond past “facilitation” of Israeli-Palestinian talks.

“As such, we request the Biden administration promptly establish a bold, public framework outlining the steps necessary” to establish a Palestinian state over both the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the senators wrote.

They said an independent Palestinian state would be “non-militarised” —terminology embraced by former president Bill Clinton in his peace push two decades ago — and would recognise Israel while renouncing Hamas.

The senators called for a “regional peace initiative” also. Biden and Blinken have repeatedly voiced support for a two-state solution but did little to advance it before the war, aware that Netanyahu and his hard-right government are firmly against the idea.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has built close relations with the rival Republicans, whose presumptive nominee to challenge Biden in November, Donald Trump, staunchly backed Israeli positions during his time as president.

The Israeli leader meanwhile addressed the minority Senate Republicans via video link on Wednesday, giving a presentation on the military operation and taking questions.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, the top elected US Republican, said he spoke with Netanyahu at length by telephone earlier in the day and expressed “strong disagreement” with Schumer.

Schumer was asked in a separate news conference about media reports that Netanyahu had also asked to address Democrats but was turned down.

“When you make these issues partisan, you hurt the cause of Israel,” Schumer said, without directly confirming the reporting.

“I gave this speech out of a real love for Israel and, if you read the speech, we called only for there to be an election after the hostilities had declined, after Hamas was defeated,” he added.