List of All Articles with Tag 'world'

Ukrainian special forces reported on Tuesday that they had struck two Russian military airfields, following the first-time deployment of long-range ballistic missiles supplied by the US. The details of the weapons’ delivery has been shrouded in secrecy – unlike previous aid provided to Ukraine from the Biden Administration. The missiles – which Ukraine has reportedly been petitioning the US to deliver for months – may prove key to helping Ukrainian forces in the months of conflict ahead. Here’s what we know. What are ATACMS and why does Ukraine need them? The Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) is a long-range guided missile that gives operational commanders the “immediate firepower to win the deep battle”. Produced by US global security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin, the missiles carry a 500lb (227kg) class blast fragmentation warhead. The weapons are fitted with a specialised GPS system and have a maximum range of 300km (around 190 miles) – though the ones supplied to Ukraine have a shorter range and carry cluster munitions. When fired, the clusters open in the air, releasing hundreds of bomblets rather than a single warhead. Ukraine says the missiles will help fuel their counteroffensive as it heads into the muddy and colder winter months, enabling troops to strike behind Russian lines while staying out of firing range. The ATACMS have been key in Ukraine’s ability to hit an airfield in Berdyansk since it is within striking distance of the shorter-range version of the missile, and the cluster munitions would be effective in hitting multiple targets. The closest Ukrainian troop positions on the western bank of the Dnieper River are just about 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Berdyansk. What have they been used for? On Tuesday, president Zelensky confirmed the ATACMS had been used on the battlefield against Russia and "executed very accurately” during an offensive known as “Operation Dragonfly”. Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces claimed that a nighttime attack on targets in eastern and southern Ukraine destroyed nine Russian helicopters and other military equipment and personnel at two airfields in Russia-occupied regions – including the one at Berdyansk. The missiles also struck an airfield in Luhansk, an occupied city in eastern Ukraine. The special forces also managed to successfully damage airfield runways, Ukraine said. “The ammunition depot in Berdyansk detonated until 4am. The detonation in Luhansk continued until 11am,” Ukrainian Special Operations Forces said in a statement. “Losses in the enemy’s manpower amount to dozens of dead and wounded. Bodies are still being pulled from the rubble.” How many ATACMS has the US provided? After many months of dragging its feet, the Biden administration greenlit the delivery of a “small number” of the missiles last month, following continued pressure from Ukraine. The delivery of the missiles was made quietly and US officials have refused to discuss it publicly. The expectation was that the first public acknowledgment would come when the missiles were used on the battlefield. An official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity said the missiles got into Ukraine within the last few days. The US has refused to provide any details on how many missiles have been delivered, although officials had suggested that the plan was indeed to send a small number – roughly two dozen. During his Tuesday address, Mr Zelensky said: "Today I express special gratitude to the United States," adding that the missiles "have proven themselves." Why the secrecy? That intense secrecy is a marked change from previous US weapons sent by the Biden administration. In nearly all other cases, the US has publicly announced its decision prior to the weapons and equipment being shipped overseas. The hesitancy may be, in part, to do with the range of the missiles, with concerns that Kyiv could use the weapons to hit deep into Russian territory, enraging Moscow and escalating the conflict. Lingering US concerns about escalating tensions with Russia are reportedly the reason that the ATACMS version that went to Ukraine has a shorter range than the maximum distance the missiles can have. The small number of missiles sent also underscores the US reluctance to send the powerful weapons. Sending the cluster munition version will mark the second time the Democratic administration has moved to send that type of weapon. Read More Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin’s forces suffer blow as helicopters destroyed by missile strikes, says Kyiv Experts reveal what the winter will bring for the Ukraine war – and why Putin will be banking on Trump

A train heading to Strasburg carrying hundreds of members and staff of the European Parliament ended up at Disneyland Paris on Monday after taking the wrong turn. The special train - which costs £90million a year to run - is chartered once a month to get European officials between parliaments in Brussels and Strasbourg. However, a signalling error on Monday meant that MEPs briefly ended up with a view of Disney princesses and animated attractions. After departing from Brussels, the train left Charles de Gaulle Airport and headed towards Disneyland because of the error. Officials on the train were told that the diversion was due to an “error in the route” and were quick to make light of their predicament on social media. German MEP, Daniel Freund joked on X: “We are NOT a Mickey Mouse Parliament.” Another Dutch lawmaker, Samira Rafaela, wrote “Team Disneyland”, in a photo posted on social media. Unfortunately, the stopover at Disneyland was not long enough for the MEPs to enjoy themselves at the theme park, as the delay was only 45 minutes. SNCF Networks, the railway company who charter the train, said the cause was a signalling error at the Roissy Charles-de-Gaulle TGV station. It apologised for the inconvenience, noting that the diversion caused only a 45-minute delay. “The passengers arrived at their destination at 12.50pm,” it told AFP news. It was eventually put back on to the correct track for Strasbourg. Read More Tell us if you think price is the biggest problem with electric cars EU to investigate X’s handling of disinformation over Hamas attack on Israel Electric cars will cost drivers £6,000 more if Sunak fails to get Brexit deal with EU

The killing of two Swedish citizens in an attack ahead of a football match in Brussels has shocked the country, although the government has been warning for months that Swedes were at greater risk since a recent string of public desecrations of the Quran holy book by a handful of anti-Islam activists. Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday noted that the government in August had raised the terror alert to the second-highest level following threats against Sweden by Islamic extremists. “Now we know with chilling clarity that there were grounds for those concerns,” he said. The desecrations, primarily by an Iraqi refugee living in Sweden, have sparked angry reactions in Muslim countries. In June, demonstrators in Iraq stormed the Swedish Embassy and the Iraqi government cut off diplomatic relations with Sweden. Now Swedish nationals have been urged to remain vigilant after the gunman opened fire and killed two Swedes in Brussels, with a third victim seriously injured. Mr Kristersson said he had been told by Belgium that the perpetrator “had stayed in Sweden but was not known to the Swedish police”. The European Union’s passport-free zone allowed him to travel to Sweden. The PM has called on the EU to bolster border controls and internal security, while Swedes abroad have been encouraged to download the UD Resklar app to receive updated safety alerts. The attack unfolded at 7pm when a man, who named himself in a video as Abdesalem Lassoued, opened fire in the north of the city centre. Videos shared online showed a man on a scooter, dressed in an orange fluorescent jacket, pull up and start shooting passers-by. He then chases people into the hallway of an apartment building to gun them down while four gunshots can be heard. A major manhunt was launched, with the perpetrator eventually tracked down to a cafe in Schaerbeek, after a witness recognised him and contacted the police. He was shot and later died of his injuries, with the interior minister Annelies Verlinden posting on Twitter/X, that “The perpetrator of the terrorist attack in Brussels has been identified and has died.” The gunman, who named himself in a video as Abdesalem Lassoued, is believed to be a Tunisian man who was in Belgium illegally after his asylum application was rejected in 2020. He posted a video online saying he had killed people in the name of God, with the Belgian prosecutor’s office stating their belief he was inspired by Isis. While they initially said there did not appear to be any links between the attack and the Israel-Gaza war, they later said they could not exclude that possibility. Belgium prime minister Alexander De Croo called Monday’s shooting “a harrowing act of terrorism” in a press conference, while it is believed the victims were probably targeted because they were Swedish. The attack occurred three miles away from the stadium where Belgium was playing Sweden to qualify for the Euro 2024 football tournament. Following news of the attack, the match was abandoned at half time while 35,000 fans had to wait for hours in the King Baudouin stadium before being evacuated in groups. Sweden’s foreign ministry sent a text message to its citizens in Belgium on Tuesday morning warning them to be vigilant. It later issued a statement urging all Swedes abroad to be careful. “All indications are that this is a terror attack aimed at Sweden and Swedish citizens only due to them being Swedish,” Mr Kristersson told a news conference.“These terrorists want to scare us into obedience and silence. That will not happen.” Sweden’s terror alert was raised to its second-highest level in August after a series of public Quran burnings, with the government warning that the country had become a target for jihadis. After copies of the Quran were burnt outside Stockholm’s Royal Palace, the city’s largest mosque, and the Turkish embassy, state authorities were warned by intelligence services of a heightened risk for a terrorist attack. Swedish officials have repeatedly condemned the desecrations while saying they are allowed under freedom of speech. The government is investigating whether to give police greater authority to stop such acts on security grounds.“Not everything that is legal is appropriate,” Mr Kristersson said Tuesday. “What you do in Sweden can have consequences elsewhere.” Protests occurred in Muslim-majority countries across the world, with protestors in Iraq storming the Swedish embassy and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan holding up Sweden’s NATO membership bid. Sweden’s embassies urged nationals to exercise increased vigilance abroad while Swedes at home voiced concerns about safety in a country lately also contending with a wave of gangland shootings. “The threat assessment against Sweden has gradually changed and the threat of attacks by above all violent Islamist extremism has increased,” security police SAPO said in a statement following the attack on Monday. “It is a serious situation and the security police estimates that it will remain for a considerable period.” Read More Climbers scale 142-metre tall tower in Barcelona city centre Ukraine Russia war: Putin’s forces suffer blow as helicopters destroyed - live Experts on what winter brings for the Ukraine war – and why Putin is banking on Trump Sweden captain Victor Lindelof ‘shocked and devastated’ by killing of two fans What we know about Isis Brussels terror suspect Abdesalem Lassoued Sweden fans given overnight police protection in Brussels after shooting during Euro 2024 qualifier

Anti fossil-fuel protesters led by Greta Thunberg are blocking oil executives from entering the annual Energy Intelligence Forum

A deal between the European Union’s two biggest countries will lay the foundations for updated fiscal rules, French

Russia has lost 127 tanks, 239 armoured personnel vehicles (APVs) and 161 artillery systems in a week, Kyiv has said as Vladimir Putin launches a sustained assault in the east of Ukraine. Moscow’s forces lost eight tanks, 25 APVs and 33 artillery systems in the past day, Ukraine’s General Staff said on Sunday. The Independent cannot independently confirm Kyiv’s numbers which come after Putin claimed Ukraine‘s counteroffensive “completely failed”. “As for the counteroffensive, which is allegedly stalling, it has failed completely,” Putin said in video remarks posted to social media by a Kremlin journalist Pavel Zarubin. Russia currently controls about 17.5% of Ukrainian territory and a four-month-old Ukrainian counteroffensive this year has resulted in almost no net territorial gains. Read More Russian attacks kill six in Ukraine as Kyiv ramps up drone counter strikes Russian governor reported to police for speaking out over Putin’s ‘unnecessary’ war against Ukraine Ukrainian forces release video of downed Russian Mi-8 helicopter: ‘It burns beautifully’

Belgian police are searching Tuesday for a Tunisian man who killed two Swedish football fans as they investigate

Two Swedes were killed in Brussels after a gunman opened fire in the city centre, police have said. Footage shared online showed a man dressed in an orange jacket unloading several shots, using a large weapon. The bearded man was reportedly seen leaving the crime scene on a scooter. The violent incident came ahead of a qualifier game for the UEFA Euros between Sweden and Belgium at the Heysel Stadium, some three miles away. The second half of the match was later called off after players reportedly refused to return to the field. A message from the Swedish FA, sent to supporters advised fans to remain inside the stadium. Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo told reporters that “the perpetrator is said to be a man of Tunisian origin who was staying illegally in our country”. “Two lives were cut short, mown down by the most extreme cruelty. Our thoughts go out to the victims, their loved ones, their relatives. We offer our condolences,” he added. Read More Gunman at large after fatally shooting two people in Brussels Belgium stadium on lockdown with thousands of fans held inside after Brussels shooting Soccer match between Belgium and Sweden suspended after deadly shooting in Brussels

Russia has intensified its offensive in northeastern Ukraine to break through its heavily fortified defence and recapture the Kupiansk-Lyman area. The Russian Army is preparing for “serious offensive actions” and sending more staff in Kupiansk-Lyman, commander of the Ukrainian ground forces Oleksandr Syrskyi said. The fighting had "significantly escalated", he said, adding, "The main goal is to break through our troops’ defences and recapture our territory". But Ukraine’s eastern forces said president Volodymyr Zelensky’s forces were putting up a tough fight from well-entrenched troops, forcing Russian soldiers to retreat. “Our fortifications there are quite reliable. We have a powerful, dug-in position,” Ilia Yevlash, spokesperson for Ukraine’s forces in the east, told Ukrainian television. “So the enemy got it right in the teeth and retreated in order to regroup.” Russia captured the northeastern towns near Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv when the invasion began but Ukrainian forces recaptured the areas last year, evicting invading forces from some parts of the country’s Donbas industrial heartland. Its recapturing marked a significant step in the Ukrainian offensive to defend its territories. The Russian defence ministry acknowledged that it launched an “intense military activity” in the area and repelled 10 Ukrainian attacks in the Kupiansk area and two more in adjacent Lyman. In June, Ukraine initiated a counteroffensive with the primary objective of reclaiming territory in the eastern region, notably in the vicinity of Bakhmut, which had fallen under Russian control in May. Their strategy also involved advancing southward toward the Sea of Azov. The Ukrainian military primarily achieved gradual progress, disregarding criticism from certain Western observers who contended that the offensive was proceeding too slowly. Over the past week, the focus on the eastern front has shifted from Bakhmut to Avdiivka, a town located further southwest renowned for its substantial coking plant. The leading local authority in Avdiivka said there was a temporary calm in the city but they anticipated a forthcoming assault. “Shelling has diminished, there was less today,” Vitaliy Barabash, head of Avdiivka’s military administration, told national television, while noting that two people were killed in a nearby village. “We expect there will be new waves of heavy attacks in the days to come.” Read More Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin suffers serious losses in largest offensive in months Sushi standoff spreads as Russia joins China in banning Japanese seafood Russian governor reported to police for speaking out over Putin’s ‘unnecessary’ war against Ukraine The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing on Tuesday for a visit that underscores China’s support for Moscow during its war in Ukraine as well as Russian backing for China's bid to expand its economic and diplomatic influence abroad. The two countries have forged an informal alliance against the United States and other democratic nations that is now complicated by the Israel-Hamas war. China has sought to balance its ties with Israel against its relations with Iran and Syria, two countries that are strongly backed by Russia and with which China has forged ties for economic reasons as well as to challenge Washington's influence in the Middle East. Putin's plane was met by an honor guard as the Russian leader began his visit that is also a show of support for Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s signature “Belt and Road” initiative to build infrastructure and expand China’s overseas influence. In an interview to Chinese state media, Putin praised the massive but loosely linked BRI projects. “Yes, we see that some people consider it an attempt by the People’s Republic of China to put someone under its thumb, but we see otherwise, we just see desire for cooperation,” he told state broadcaster CCTV, according to a transcript released by the Kremlin on Monday. Putin will be among the highest profile guests at a gathering marking the 10th anniversary of Xi’s announcement of the BRI project, which has laden countries such as Zambia and Sri Lanka with heavy debt from contracts with Chinese companies to build roads, airports and other public works they could not otherwise afford. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has praised the Chinese policy as bringing development to neglected areas. Asked by reporters Friday about his visit, Putin said it would encompass talks on Belt and Road-related projects, which he said Moscow wants to link with efforts by an economic alliance of former Soviet Union nations mostly located in Central Asia to “achieve common development goals.” He also downplayed the impact of China’s economic influence in a region that Russia has long considered its backyard and where it has worked to maintain political and military clout. “We don’t have any contradictions here, on the contrary, there is a certain synergy,” Putin said. Putin said he and Xi would also discuss growing economic ties between Moscow and Beijing in energy, high-tech and financial industries. China has also grown in importance as an export destination for Russia. Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said that from China’s view, “Russia is a safe neighbor that is friendly, that is a source of cheap raw materials, that’s a support for Chinese initiatives on the global stage and that’s also a source of military technologies, some of those that China doesn’t have.” “For Russia, China is its lifeline, economic lifeline in its brutal repression against Ukraine,” Gabuev told The Associated Press. “It’s the major market for Russian commodities, it’s a country that provides its currency and payment system to settle Russia’s trade with the outside world — with China itself, but also with many other countries, and is also the major source of sophisticated technological imports, including dual-use goods that go into the Russian military machine.” Gabuev said that while Moscow and Beijing will be unlikely to forge a full-fledged military alliance, their defense cooperation will grow. “Both countries are self-sufficient in terms of security and they benefit from partnering, but neither really requires a security guarantee from the other. And they preach strategic autonomy,” he said. “There will be no military alliance, but there will be closer military cooperation, more interoperability, more cooperation on projecting force together, including in places like the Arctic and more joint effort to develop a missile defense that makes the U.S. nuclear planning and planning of the U.S. and its allies in Asia and in Europe more complicated,” he added. The Chinese and Soviets were Cold War rivals for influence among left-leaning states, but China and Russia have since partnered in the economic, military and diplomatic spheres. Just weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last February, Putin met with Xi in Beijing and the sides signed an agreement pledging a “no-limits” relationship. Beijing’s attempts to present itself as a neutral peace broker in Russia’s war on Ukraine have been widely dismissed by the international community. Xi visited Moscow in March as part of a flurry of exchanges between the countries. China has condemned international sanctions imposed on Russia, but hasn’t directly addressed an arrest warrant issued for Putin by the International Criminal Court on charges of alleged involvement in the abductions of thousands of children from Ukraine. ___ Associated Press writer Jim Heintz in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this report.

New Zealand inflation slowed more than economists expected in the third quarter, adding to signs that the central

Representative Jim Jordan closed in Monday night on the votes he needs to be the next US House