US President Donald Trump has suspended sweeping new sanctions against Russia that he signed into law just a month ago, invoking a national-interest exemption to waive penalties targeting Moscow’s economy and countries purchasing Russian energy.

In an executive order issued on Friday, Trump waived sanctions and tariffs mandated by the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, including proposed 500% tariffs on imports from Russia and 100% tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas.

“I have submitted to the Congress a certification that the issuance of such a waiver is in the national interests of the United States and a report explaining the basis for the certification,” Trump wrote.

China and India, the two largest buyers of Russian crude oil, were expected to be among the countries hardest hit by the legislation.

Trump lifted sanctions on Russian diesel exports earlier this month in an effort to curb rising energy prices ahead of the US midterm elections. The move sparked outrage in Ukraine and among America’s European allies, prompting a bipartisan group of US senators to accuse Trump of betraying Kiev.

According to US media reports, Trump decided to ease sanctions after Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky refused to halt strikes on Russian energy facilities, which Trump blamed for high energy prices.

On Friday, US Representative Gregory Meeks introduced a bill in Congress seeking to block the diesel agreement with Russia. The Democrat accused Trump of “cozying up to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and striking self-enriching deals instead of standing with Ukraine.”

Russia has maintained that it has adapted to mounting Western economic pressure, while describing the Graham bill as a hostile move that would undermine Trump’s efforts to broker peace between Moscow and Kiev.

“[Russian] diesel has begun reaching global markets, and it will have a certain positive effect on stabilizing oil markets,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s investment envoy and a negotiator on Ukraine, hailed the waiver as “an important and historic moment.” Economic cooperation serves the interests of both countries, “contributes to global economic stability, and lays the foundation for building trust and achieving lasting peace,” he wrote on X.

US President Donald Trump has said he would welcome Russian President Vladimir Putin at the upcoming G20 summit in Florida, despite efforts by Ukraine and other European countries to isolate Moscow.

After returning to office in early 2025, Trump broke ranks with many of his Western allies, who had suspended high-level meetings with Russia over the Ukraine conflict.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed last month that Putin had been invited to the summit, scheduled for December 14–15 in Miami.

“I don’t know if he’s coming. I would certainly love to have him,” Trump told reporters on Friday when asked whether the Russian leader would attend.

Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said last month that the Kremlin was grateful for the invitation but had yet to decide whether Putin would attend. He added that Russia would “actively participate in the work of the G20.”

The invitation drew criticism from EU officials and a bipartisan group of US senators. “It’s clearly, I think, the wrong path to normalize people who are starting wars,” said Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat. 

Trump: I would certainly love to have Putin at the G20. I don’t know if he’s coming. https://t.co/nc7NJMRESQ

— Clash Report (@clashreport) October 16, 2026

Trump has defended his engagement with Moscow as part of his efforts to end the Ukraine conflict.

Trump has revived direct negotiations with Russia, which were largely suspended under his predecessor, Joe Biden, following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. His efforts to mediate a peace deal between Moscow and Kiev have caused friction with Ukraine and Washington’s European allies.

US presidential envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have visited Moscow together three times since December 2025, while Witkoff has made eight trips to the Russian capital since Trump returned to office.

Trump and Putin last met in person on August 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska.

Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov attended a G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors in Asheville, North Carolina, on August 31–September 1, 2026. It was his first in-person appearance at a G20 meeting since February 2022.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing mounting accusations that he ignored warnings ahead of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack, as a bitter blame game over one of Israel’s worst security failures emerges in the final weeks of the election campaign.

Former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar has filed a defamation suit against Netanyahu, accusing him of falsely blaming intelligence officials for the attack despite receiving repeated alerts about security threats.

The Hamas-led assault killed around 1,200 people in southern Israel, with another 251 taken hostage. Israel’s subsequent military offensive in Gaza has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians, according to the local health authorities.

Bar is seeking nearly $1 million in damages, claiming he warned the prime minister of growing danger in the months preceding the assault. He says a long trail of documents will expose Netanyahu’s account of events as false.

“Israel’s worst disaster has become political kryptonite,” RT correspondent Charlotte Dubenskij reported from Jerusalem on Friday, as the country prepares to vote on October 27.

Further questions have been raised by Netanyahu’s former military secretary, Avi Gil, who claims officials attempted to alter the recorded time of a phone call made on the morning of October 7.

The prime minister has also denied reports that he received advance warnings from Egyptian intelligence and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed. The claims have drawn criticism from political rivals, including former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and former military chief Gadi Eisenkot.

Questions have also emerged over Netanyahu’s handling of the subsequent Gaza war. Former Israeli hostage negotiator Nitzan Alon has suggested that political considerations delayed a deal that could have brought captives home much earlier.

Katie Zacharia is stepping down as US President Donald Trump’s press secretary after just five days on the job, the White House confirmed on Friday.

A conservative political commentator, Zacharia has faced widespread criticism over her handling of her debut press briefing and allegations that she misrepresented her legal credentials.

Trump cast doubt on Zacharia’s future in the role while speaking to reporters outside the White House. “Honestly, if I were you, I’d reconsider,” he said, adding that he had spoken to her shortly beforehand. “Katie, do you need this? I don’t think you need this.”

Several hours later, White House communications director Steven Cheung said Zacharia would be “transitioning into a new role that will be announced at a later date.”

Zacharia posted a photo of herself with Trump in the Oval Office on X, saying that “it was an honor to work for him.”

President Trump is a kind, wonderful, gracious, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and hardworking man. I wish more Americans appreciated him. No one will ever make America great the way he has and continues to. It was an honor to work for him. https://t.co/Tp4NizrhE2

— Katie Zacharia (@KatieZacharia) October 17, 2026

According to the New York Times, Zacharia largely read from a script during her first and only press briefing on Tuesday and ended the Q&A session after just five and a half minutes. Critics also accused her of misrepresenting herself as a lawyer after she failed to confirm whether she had passed a US bar exam. Zacharia later claimed to have passed a bar exam in China, where she worked for a Beijing-based law firm in the 2010s.

During his first term, Trump fired White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci in July 2017, just ten days after his appointment, following a profanity-laden phone call with a reporter in which he attacked senior administration officials.

At her first press briefing, Zacharia announced that Trump had asked US Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle, the former fiancée of his son Donald Trump Jr., to resign following allegations of misconduct.

Several high-profile officials have left the Trump administration this year, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, and Navy Secretary John Phelan.

Ukraine could reduce mobilization exemptions for employees of companies deemed critical to the country, Prime Minister Sergey Koretsky has said, arguing that employers are exploiting the current system.

The country declared mobilization shortly after the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022, barring most military-age men from leaving the country.

However, approximately 1.4 million Ukrainians currently hold employment-based exemptions from military service, according to Economy Minister Aleksandr Kravchenko.

Speaking during a Q&A session in the Ukrainian parliament on Friday, Koretsky said the government is considering stripping critical-sector employers of the right to exempt 100% of their staff. He cited cases in which companies had significantly expanded their workforces, with all employees automatically shielded from conscription.

“Unfortunately, there are many abuses, and additional exemptions continue to be granted every month,” Koretsky said.

“If you have a 100% exemption, it means you can expand your workforce indefinitely and exempt people from mobilization, regardless of whether they actually work as repair technicians, energy workers or in other roles. Unfortunately, this practice has already become widespread,” he added.

The prime minister called for audits to determine how many employees at a given company perform tasks essential to its operations and the country’s needs. He added that stricter criteria could be applied to businesses as a whole, with only those supporting Ukraine’s defense capabilities and other essential state functions qualifying as critical.

Earlier this week, opposition MP Yaroslav Zhelezhnyak published what he claimed was a draft of the proposed changes, reducing exemption quotas for defense and energy companies from 100% to 85%, and for housing and utility companies from 75% to 60%.

Multiple lawmakers and businesses have warned that such measures would exacerbate existing staffing shortages in critical industries.

Koretsky, who was appointed prime minister in a government reshuffle in July, has been linked by local media to disgraced businessman and former close Zelensky associate Timur Mindich, who fled to Israel amid an investigation into an alleged $100 million embezzlement scheme involving state nuclear power operator Energoatom.

According to Strana UA, Koretsky has defied Zelensky’s expectations by developing political ambitions, disregarding some of his requests and communicating directly with European partners without Zelensky’s involvement.

Amid mounting battlefield losses and desertions, Ukraine’s conscription drive has been marred by incidents of draft officers forcibly detaining military-age men on the streets, sparking spontaneous protests, clashes and outrage on social media.

While Kiev does not regularly publish figures on its battlefield losses, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk claimed last month that Ukrainian forces had recently been suffering around 27,000 killed and wounded per month. Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, claimed that Ukrainian casualties reached 500,000 in 2025 alone.

Zelensky’s diesel-fueled burnout

For Zelensky, it’s a “diplomatic nightmare,” as Russian analyst Sergey Poletaev wrote for RT. Trump rubbed salt in the wound on Saturday when he openly suggested that Ukrainians “get a new leader who can make a deal” and halt attacks on Russian oil refineries. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump went on to claim, “wants to make a deal more than Zelensky.”

Backed into a corner, Zelensky began throwing haymakers. Accusing the American president of empathizing with dictators, Zelensky demanded air defense missiles from the US before vowing to continue his drone campaign against Russia’s refineries – with or without American support. 

The US apparently sent a warning signal to Zelensky by throttling the Ukrainian military’s access to SpaceX’s high-speed Starlink and Starshield satellite communications services, which are vital tools in guiding attack drones used against Russia, and in detecting incoming retaliatory strikes. Neither Trump nor SpaceX CEO Elon Musk would take responsibility for the communications drop-off, but even if they had, their message would likely have fallen of deaf ears.

Zelensky escalates the energy war

The Ukrainian leader followed through on his promise to keep hitting Russian refineries, despite Trump’s announcement of an “energy ceasefire” between Moscow and Kiev (which neither side confirmed). Ukrainian forces attacked facilities in Russia’s Saratov and Ryazan regions on Wednesday, before firing a barrage of four long-range Flamingo cruise missiles and 69 fixed-wing kamikaze drones at the Ryazan refinery again on Thursday.

Debris from an intercepted UAV triggered an intense fire at the facility, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

Trump went on to savage Zelensky in a Newsmax interview on Thursday. “I’m not a big fan of Zelensky. They’ve destroyed that country,” he said, before accusing the Ukrainian leader of selling missiles given to him by the US “on the open market.”

“Zelensky is not a good guy for us to deal with,” Trump concluded.

Nord Stream trial begins

As Ukraine doubles down on its infrastructure war, the costliest infrastructure attack in history is finally being litigated in a German courtroom. Sergey Kuznetsov, a Ukrainian military officer, went on trial in Hamburg this week, accused of leading the team that sabotaged the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in September 2022, an act that German prosecutors consider a “war crime.” 

As RT has explored in depth, the prosecution’s version of events is riddled with plot holes and inconsistencies. However, to pick apart the alternative story – that the pipelines were destroyed in a CIA operation – would call the relationship between Washington and Berlin, the foundation of the postwar liberal order, into question. 

While a guilty verdict against Kuznetsov would directly implicate the Ukrainian military in a war crime against its largest foreign donor, the trial, at least at this stage, appears set up to avoid this outcome.

Russiagate resurrected

Speaking of reopening old wounds, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham dug up the bloated corpse of ‘Russiagate’ this week to bolster his efforts to undo the 2016 Brexit referendum and rejoin the EU. Burnham claimed that he had “clear” evidence that Russia interfered in the vote, in which Britons voted by 51.89% to 48.11% to leave the union.

Just as the original ‘Russiagate’ claims against Trump fell apart under questioning, Burnham’s allegation crumbled once subjected to some basic scrutiny. The British PM was unable to back up his accusation when grilled in Parliament, and his foreign secretary, Stephen Doughty, humiliated himself on national television when he attempted to evade questioning on the claim.

The final nail in the coffin came when Burnham’s own domestic intelligence chief cautioned against exaggerating “Russian influence” on Brexit, arguing that debating the influence of “Russian trolls” on the vote “play[s] into our adversaries’ hands by making these trolls look 10ft tall.”

As it turned out, none of this was true. The strike interrupted the activity of Yandex’ web crawler bots, which archive websites for search users, but with the help of an AI-created graph and some creative interpretation of the word “bot,” the hoax made it all the way to the Warsaw Security Forum.

French riots spread

French students took part in a fifth wave of demonstrations this week, which they say are aimed at securing more school funding and better learning conditions. Every wave of protests thus far has descended into rioting and vandalism, and this week’s marches were no different, with participants torching cars and battering police officers with cobblestones and fireworks in Paris.

RT’s Nadege Abderazzak watched heavily armored police baton-charge crowds of rioters in the French capital on Wednesday, noting that officers now outnumber protesters two-to-one at some rallies.

With French President Emmanuel Macron determined to increase military spending and continue arming Ukraine, France’s financial situation is in dire straits, and right-wing National Rally leader Marine Le Pen is on track to win the country’s next presidential election.

Meanwhile, Albanian students have taken a page out of their French counterparts’ book. After large protests demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama and opposition leader Sali Berisha over corruption allegations, a crowd of students breached the fence of the Education Ministry in Tirana on Wednesday and torched the building.

Rama’s response has also drawn from the Western playbook, with the Albanian PM accusing protesters of waging “hybrid war” against the country.

What we’re watching

Zelensky may be in Trump’s bad books, but he can still count on the support of Macron, Burnham, and the rest of his European backers, whom he met in Brussels on Thursday and Friday. In his address to the European Council on Friday, the Ukrainian leader asked for another “70 billion euros” for ammunition, missiles, and air defense. Should Ukraine “fall,” Zelensky warned, another 20 million Ukrainian migrants will flood into the EU.

We’ll be keeping an eye on what kind of promises the cash-strapped Europeans make after this blatant shakedown.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will fly to Tehran on Monday for talks with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi. The two diplomats are expected to focus on de-escalating the simmering US/Iran conflict in the Middle East, and any progress on this front will likely be reflected in global energy markets.

Lavrov will also meet Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic on Friday, ahead of critical parliamentary elections on October 25. Amid student protests, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic called the election early and stepped down to run as prime minister, a high-stakes move that turned the vote into a referendum on his nine years in power. With pro-Western students and right-wing ‘patriotic’ forces squeezing Vucic from either side, we’ll be keeping an eye out for polls, protests, and interference from the usual suspects. 

For more on all of these stories, stick with RT.

Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine has been badly beaten by Israeli settlers and stripped of her equipment while covering attacks on Palestinians harvesting olives in the occupied West Bank.

The assault occurred on Friday near the village of Abu Falah, the latest in an ongoing string of attacks staged by organized settler groups. Masked settlers have repeatedly attacked Palestinian villages, hurling stones and setting orchards on fire in an apparent effort to disrupt the autumn harvest. The Israeli military, which is usually present, has taken little to no action against the settlers.

Levine, a veteran photographer who has covered conflicts across the Middle East and elsewhere for decades, was caught in a settler charge on the Palestinians. The mob threw the journalist, who was wearing a blue protective vest clearly marked ‘PRESS,’ to the ground, repeatedly kicking her while stealing her cameras and phone.

“They just kept kicking me and kicking me, like probably 50 times,” Levine told reporters after the incident.

Footage from the scene shows the immediate aftermath, with Levine seen prone on the ground after the settlers were repelled by the villagers. The journalist was badly shaken but apparently spared more serious injuries thanks to her protective vest and helmet.

Severe settler + soldier attack on olive harvesters in Abu Falah. American WaPo journalist Heidi Levine badly wounded. Machine gunfire—at least one Palestinian shot. Tear gas. Soldiers assaulting journalists. pic.twitter.com/He61cNYk0c

— jasper nathaniel (@infinite_jaz) October 16, 2026

The photographer was evacuated by Palestinian paramedics and treated at a hospital in Ramallah for her injuries. Later on, another group of journalists was reportedly pelted with stones by settlers at the site. Oren Ziv, a journalist who also witnessed the attack, reported that at least one Palestinian was wounded by gunfire. It was not immediately clear whether Israeli settlers or the military fired the shots, but the IDF reportedly did nothing to stop the violence.

Ten days earlier, veteran Palestinian photographer Jaafar Ashtiyeh, who has been working with AFP, suffered a similar assault during a settler raid on Palestinian olive farmers. The journalist, marked as press, was attacked by armed Israeli settlers, who beat him with rifle butts and robbed him of his equipment. The violence was reportedly witnessed by an IDF unit that did not intervene.

Journalists documenting settler violence have increasingly become victims of it. The Committee to Protect Journalists documented at least 16 incidents involving 35 Palestinian, Israeli, and international journalists in the first eight months of 2026 alone, with the figures already surpassing those recorded in 2025.

Russian forces have liberated the key Ukrainian stronghold of Dobropolye in Donbass, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov has reported to President Vladimir Putin.

During a meeting on Friday, Gerasimov said assault units from several brigades had taken part in the operation and were searching basements for any remaining Ukrainian troops.

Putin praised the “coordinated and highly professional” actions of the Russian assault units, noting that Ukrainian forces had turned Dobropolye into a “robust stronghold.”

In late September, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that its forces had encircled Dobropolye.

The town’s capture marks another step in Russia’s advance toward the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration, a cluster of cities in northwestern DPR that forms Ukraine’s last major fortified stronghold in the region.

Two women have filed a federal lawsuit accusing former US Representative Matt Gaetz, President Donald Trump’s first pick for attorney general, of participating in a sex trafficking ring while serving in Congress. Gaetz has faced similar allegations for years, and has denied any wrongdoing.

The lawsuit, filed in Florida on Thursday, alleges that Gaetz and several other men, including former Seminole County Tax Collector Joel Greenberg and former Florida legislator Christopher Dorworth, sexually exploited the plaintiffs between 2017 and 2019.

The women, identified as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2, are seeking unspecified damages under the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act.

According to the complaint, Greenberg recruited financially vulnerable young women through the dating website SeekingArrangement.com and introduced them to Gaetz.

The lawsuit alleges that Gaetz had sex with Jane Doe 1 and a 17-year-old girl at a July 2017 party where narcotics were distributed. He allegedly paid the minor $400 in cash and transferred $500 to Jane Doe 1 three days later.

Gaetz and Greenberg subsequently made at least 19 payments to Jane Doe 1, ranging from $150 to $1,000, the complaint claims. Jane Doe 2 alleged that she first had sex with Gaetz in exchange for money in October 2017.

The men allegedly used “their public office, power, and wealth to prey on the economic vulnerability of Plaintiffs,” the lawsuit states. Both women were in their early twenties when they met Gaetz.

Greenberg pleaded guilty to federal charges, including sex trafficking of a minor, in 2021 and was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Responding on X on Thursday, Gaetz appeared to mock the lawsuit, posting a photo of three women in swimsuits overlooking the ocean in the Bahamas.

“Jane Doe Strikes Again!” he wrote, sarcastically questioning why nobody had responded to the women’s supposed cries for help on Instagram. He later told reporters he looked forward to disproving the allegations.

Jane Doe Strikes Again! Two adult women sued me today alleging they were sex trafficked to the Bahamas. I’m shocked nobody responded to their repeated cries for help, posted to instagram. https://t.co/HPvX2xypzs

— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) October 15, 2026

In December 2024, the House Ethics Committee reported finding “substantial evidence” that Gaetz had paid women for sex, including a 17-year-old girl, and used illegal drugs while in office.

A separate Justice Department investigation ended in 2023 without charges.

Gaetz withdrew from consideration to be Trump’s attorney general in November 2024 after several Republican senators signaled opposition to his nomination over the allegations.

The Houthis continue to strike Saudi Arabia despite Riyadh’s threats of a forceful response and promises to enlist outside partners to defend the kingdom.

By targeting airports and oil infrastructure, Ansar Allah is seeking to raise the cost of Saudi involvement in Yemen’s conflict and force the kingdom’s leadership to reconsider the terms of a settlement.

The latest wave of Houthi attacks has targeted facilities of particular importance to Saudi Arabia. On the evening of October 13, a strike hit Saudi Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran, home to the company’s key management operations. The Saudi Energy Ministry reported a fire, though miraculously no one was killed.

Ansar Allah also claimed strikes on an oil refinery in Riyadh and King Khalid International Airport. The choice of targets suggests the Houthis want to put virtually all of the kingdom’s oil revenue at risk and disrupt its international air connections.

These targets also suggest that the movement is trying to influence Saudi leaders’ decisions directly. Oil infrastructure generates government revenue, airports connect the country to the outside world, and confidence in the kingdom depends on the security of both. Even limited damage can therefore produce an impact far greater than the cost of the weapons used.

The Houthis have their own history of confrontation with Saudi Arabia. The movement emerged in northern Yemen, fought a series of wars against the central government between 2004 and 2010, and seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014. Its rise was rooted in Yemen’s political system, local conflicts, and the collapse of state institutions. Iranian support strengthened an already established force with its own social base and political objectives.

The Saudi intervention in 2015 cemented Riyadh’s position as the movement’s principal foreign adversary. For the kingdom, the aim was to prevent a hostile force from consolidating power along its southern border and to support Yemen’s internationally recognized government. For the Houthi leadership, the war became both a threat to its survival and a rallying cause. Invoking foreign aggression allowed the movement to portray its struggle for domestic supremacy as a defense of national sovereignty.

That logic remains relevant to the current escalation. Saudi support for an offensive by Yemeni government forces threatens the Houthis’ territorial gains and bargaining position. Striking deep inside the kingdom allows them to raise the price of that support. Their apparent calculation is to make continued Saudi involvement in the war carry a recurring cost on Saudi soil.

The movement’s demands are concrete: an end to strikes, limits on assistance to its Yemeni adversaries, the lifting of transportation and trade restrictions, and agreements on revenues and payments. These issues were under discussion long before the latest escalation. The framework for a roadmap presented by the UN in December 2023 included a nationwide ceasefire, payment of public-sector salaries, the resumption of oil exports, and an easing of restrictions on Sanaa airport and the port of Hodeidah.

By increasing Riyadh’s costs, Ansar Allah hopes to extract concessions and retain control of the territory it has seized. A ceasefire on those terms, however, would consolidate the movement’s position without resolving how power should be shared in Yemen.

Attacks on Saudi Arabia also serve Ansar Allah’s domestic political interests. The movement uses its ability to strike deep inside the kingdom to bolster its standing among supporters. Confrontation with Riyadh also allows the Houthis to cast themselves as Yemen’s defenders against foreign intervention and use that claim to justify their bid for power.

A more accurate description would be a partnership with unequal resources in which the Yemeni side retains substantial autonomy. Weakening Saudi Arabia may serve both partners’ interests, but their preferred terms for ending the war may differ. Ansar Allah must consider conditions on Yemen’s battlefields and the survival of its own rule. Agreements between Iran and outside powers therefore do not guarantee an automatic halt to Houthi operations.

The economics of war

The development of domestic missile production and an expanding network for procuring components make it harder for Riyadh to bring Houthi attacks to an end. If the movement can replenish its arsenal from several sources, restricting Iranian supplies will have only a partial effect. An agreement with Tehran alone would therefore be insufficient to secure Saudi facilities. Much will depend on whether the Houthis themselves believe continued strikes serve their interests.

Nor do the Houthis need to match Saudi Arabia in the quantity or quality of their weapons. They can choose their targets and pause between attacks, while the kingdom must continuously defend airports, oil facilities, and cities across a vast territory. Even a single hit can disrupt a facility’s operations, trigger flight cancellations, or bring business activity to a halt. Purchases of American air defense systems reduce that threat but do not eliminate it. Riyadh’s problem is that military superiority has yet to deprive its adversary of the ability to inflict economically painful blows. That is precisely the capability the Houthis are trying to turn into negotiating leverage.

In a prolonged confrontation, the disparity in weapons costs also becomes significant. According to cited estimates, a Patriot interceptor costs more than $3 million, while some Houthi drones cost just $15,000–25,000. Defenders have to use such interceptors against cheap aircraft to protect far more valuable assets. But sustained defensive operations deplete stocks that cannot be replenished quickly, particularly amid strong global demand for air defense systems. This gives the Houthis an opportunity to wear down the kingdom’s defenses even when most of the aircraft they launch fail to reach their targets.

Technical difficulties are compounded by the structure of the Saudi armed forces. The separation of the regular military and the National Guard has historically served, in part, to protect the monarchy against a coup. But separate chains of command and highly centralized decision-making can hinder coordination and limit commanders’ initiative. Another weapons purchase, then, will not solve the problem on its own. Even additional detection and interception systems will deliver limited results if information arrives late and coordinating a response takes too long.

The Houthis can reasonably expect these shortcomings to take time to address, leaving them able to continue inflicting painful blows in the meantime. Domestic production and broader supply networks help sustain that campaign. The movement does not need to destroy major industrial facilities or shut down air travel altogether; a recurring threat is enough to make airlines reconsider routes, investors postpone decisions, and Saudi leaders spend more on protecting infrastructure.

Statements by Türkiye and Pakistan expressing their readiness to defend Saudi Arabia do not yet provide grounds to expect either country to enter the war fully, much less fight the Houthis inside Yemen. At an October 5 meeting, the parties to the Mecca Agreement announced that they would provide forces and equipment for the kingdom’s defense. The political weight of those promises, however, will depend on whether the allies can actually reduce the number of attacks and the damage they cause. As long as the strikes continue, Houthi leaders may view such declarations as rhetoric unlikely to be followed by a dangerous expansion of the war.

Ankara’s position reinforces that calculation. Turkish Foreign Affairs Minister Hakan Fidan outlined possible assistance with air defense, electronic warfare, and technical support, while explicitly ruling out Turkish troops taking part in offensive operations on foreign soil. Türkiye has thus set clear limits on its role from the outset.

Pakistan also has reasons to avoid direct intervention. Joining the war in Yemen would mean additional military spending and the risk of worsening relations with neighboring Iran. It would therefore be premature to expect Islamabad to take on the task of defeating the Houthis on Riyadh’s behalf. Its commitments to the kingdom leave room for a role limited to defending specific facilities and providing military assistance.

A similar distinction applies to the American position. Intelligence sharing and targeting assistance support Saudi operations, but they do not mean Washington is willing to stop the attacks at any cost. The Houthis appear to be counting on precisely these limits to outside involvement. Their bet is that the kingdom’s allies will help it defend itself but will be reluctant to become embroiled in a prolonged war to achieve Saudi objectives in Yemen.

Until that support produces a substantial reduction in attacks, threats to bring in allies may carry little weight with Ansar Allah.

***

The Houthis are seeking to demonstrate that continued Saudi intervention will bring losses that neither a vast defense budget nor foreign partners can prevent. If that pressure prompts Riyadh to scale back assistance to their adversaries or accept settlement terms favorable to them, the movement will have an opportunity to translate its battlefield gains into lasting political advantages.

Such an outcome would also benefit Iran by weakening Saudi Arabia’s position. Its most immediate consequence, however, would be to strengthen Ansar Allah itself in the struggle for power in Yemen.

Washington’s diesel deal with Moscow has exposed divisions within the West over its anti-Russian stance, as the US shifts toward a more pragmatic approach, former Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl has said.

US President Donald Trump announced the agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, easing sanctions on Russian diesel imports until April 2027 in an effort to bring down soaring fuel prices. The move marks a departure from the Western sanctions policy imposed on Moscow since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022.

Speaking to TASS on Friday, Kneissl described the agreement as more than a “symbolic breakthrough,” pointing to the 300,000 tons of Russian diesel expected to reach the US and global markets by November.

“The EU says that this undermines the West’s united position. However, one could also say that this marks a shift by the US toward a more pragmatic approach, while the EU continues to pursue a purely ideological line,” she stated.

The agreement has drawn criticism from European leaders attending a two-day EU summit in Brussels this week. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis accused Trump of sidelining the bloc, telling reporters that “Trump, by doing that business with Putin, stabbed us in the back. We have to do something.”

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas described the agreement as a “gift to Putin,” while defending Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reaffirmed on Friday that the bloc would maintain its sanctions against Moscow despite Washington’s decision to ease restrictions on Russian diesel.

Brussels’ hardline stance contrasts with that of EU member Slovakia, which remains heavily dependent on Russian energy and has sought to maintain economic ties with Moscow. Prime Minister Robert Fico has repeatedly called for diplomacy rather than continued military support for Kiev.

The dispute has also strained relations between Washington and Kiev. Trump has repeatedly urged Vladimir Zelensky to halt Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, blaming the attacks for pushing up global fuel prices.

The confrontation comes as global diesel supplies remain under pressure from the US-Israeli war on Iran, which has severely disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The International Energy Agency agreed on Thursday to accelerate the release of emergency oil reserves, including more than 20 million barrels of diesel, in an effort to ease shortages and bring down prices.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree tightening restrictions on the country’s strategic enterprises, requiring them to obtain government approval before taking certain actions mandated by foreign law.

Moscow established a register of strategically important companies in the early 2000s and has since gradually expanded regulations governing their activities abroad. Russian law imposes strict limits on foreign investment, takeovers, and control of such enterprises, as well as their operations overseas.

The register covers a wide range of businesses across key sectors of the Russian economy, including state-owned giants such as energy corporation Gazprom and Russian Railways (RZhD), defense manufacturers, major state-backed banks, and high-tech firms.

From now on, strategic enterprises, as well as their subsidiaries, will only be allowed to disclose information to foreign authorities that is disclosable under Russian laws, as well as information related to issuing and circulating securities.

Furthermore, strategic joint-stock companies will be prohibited from amending contracts with foreign counterparts on their own, as well as from disposing of equity stakes in foreign entities through sale or otherwise, getting rid of properties abroad, and ditching rights to conduct business in foreign countries.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has ramped up pressure on Ukraine to halt strikes on Russian oil refineries while pursuing landmark diplomacy with Moscow in a bid to bring down soaring fuel prices at home and revive stalled peace negotiations.

The overtures have left Vladimir Zelensky fuming, reigniting the bitterest public confrontation between the two since their explosive Oval Office showdown in 2025. Zelensky has fiercely criticized Trump’s Russian diesel deal and defied his demands to stop attacking Russian refineries, saying he feels “betrayed” by Washington.

In response, the US president branded the Ukrainian leader “not a good guy for us to deal with,” while suggesting that Ukraine needs a “new president,” referring to Zelensky’s long-expired presidential term.

As the dispute escalated, American officials reportedly threatened to restrict intelligence sharing and weapons supplies to Kiev, while Ukrainian commanders sounded the alarm about serious disruptions to the Starlink network, which the military heavily relies on for logistics, reconnaissance, and drone control.

Trump’s peace push has also put him on a collision course with Zelensky’s EU backers. US negotiators reportedly proposed unfreezing some Russian sovereign assets – an idea categorically rebuffed in Brussels. Zelensky then attempted to drum up support at a slightly farcical summit in Brussels where he demanded EU and NATO membership; both of which have been rejected outright in Brussels.

Moscow has welcomed Trump’s diplomatic offensive while opposing any temporary truce with Kiev, arguing that the pause will only allow Ukraine to recuperate its battered forces.

Russian diesel to the rescue

The state of US-Russia relations took a sharp turn on October 9, when Trump struck a surprise diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to allow additional Russian supplies onto American and global markets. The arrangement – announced just weeks before the US midterm elections – envisaged the release of more than 300,000 tons of Russian diesel, followed by larger shipments in the coming months. Trump pitched the deal as a way to rein in soaring fuel costs for American consumers, truckers and farmers.

According to a Reuters report, Trump’s envoys also told their Ukrainian counterparts that the US hoped that the deal could help soften Russia’s position on the peace talks.

How did Kiev react to the US-Russia diesel deal?

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the arrangement as “mutually beneficial” and serving the interests of the global market while denouncing “the destructive position” of European countries on the matter.

Zelensky tramples over Trump’s red lines

The diesel deal came after weeks of increasingly forceful demands from Trump that Kiev halt strikes on Russian oil refineries.

Since September, Trump has publicly – and in an increasingly sharp tone – urged Zelensky to stop his attacks, saying on Thursday that “all he’s doing is making the world oil price higher” while denouncing the Ukrainian leader’s approach as “a disgrace.”

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak confirmed on Wednesday that Ukrainian drones had targeted two Russian oil refineries: in Ryazan and Saratov Regions.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov described Zelensky’s behavior as “a direct and blatant challenge to President Trump.”

The Russian Defense Ministry issued its own warning, vowing to step up strikes on Ukraine’s military-related targets in response to Zelensky’s threats to attack oil facilities.

Starlink: Who controls the switch?

Zelensky subsequently confirmed that Ukrainian commanders had received warnings about a possible intelligence cutoff, although he acknowledged that cooperation had not stopped. Trump also denied suspending intelligence sharing, insisting that “we are helping them, and we are sharing intel.”

Yet on Tuesday, Zelensky complained that Kiev had received no advance warning from its partners about a Russian ballistic missile attack. He did not identify which countries had failed to provide the alerts.

While some Ukrainian officials already suspected that the disruptions were linked to the Trump-Zelensky feud, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing sources, that the order to restrict Starshield had originated inside the White House. A senior US official, however, denied that Trump personally ordered the restrictions. Later, Ukrainian officials reported that some Starshield connections had been restored.

Elon Musk – who has also been critical of Zelensky – confirmed that major decisions on Starshield rest with the American military or the president.

“Time for Ukraine to get a new president”

Trump’s jabs at Zelensky’s dubious legal status hark back to February 2025 when the US president branded the Ukrainian leader “a dictator without elections.”

Zelensky’s presidential term expired in May 2024, and he has refused to hold new elections, citing martial law. Russia has since declared him “illegitimate,” saying that his status is a major obstacle to signing a binding agreement.

In response to Trump’s criticism, Zelensky said that Kiev was ready to hold elections if Moscow agreed to a comprehensive 60-day ceasefire. Russia, however, offered a truce only on the day of any vote, arguing that Kiev would use a longer pause to recuperate its battered forces and receive more weapons from the West.

A thaw for Russia’s frozen billions?

Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner proposed unfreezing some of the €300 billion in sovereign Russian funds held in Euroclear in Belgium, and transferring them to a financial vehicle overseen by Washington, according to the Financial Times.

The EU has sought to seize the funds outright, but has faced strong resistance, particularly from Belgium, over fears of costly litigation, Russian retaliation, and damage to Europe’s financial reputation.

While US officials reportedly see the issue of Russian sovereign assets as part of a comprehensive peace agreement, the proposal “startled” Kiev’s intransigent European backers, who flatly rejected the initiative, and refused to relinquish control over the assets.

Begging in Brussels: the €27 billion hole

With his relations with Trump in tatters, Zelensky traveled to Brussels on Friday to seek financial and military backing from the EU. In a not-so-veiled swipe at the US president, he thanked unelected EU officials as “real leaders” upon his arrival.

However, Kiev’s demands for more money have already met resistance from the EU. After announcing an unexpected $27 billion defense budget hole in August, Zelensky requested the EU front load part of the €90 billion loan meant for 2027 already this year.

Zelensky’s bickering with Trump is forcing the EU to take an increasingly adversarial stance towards the US. According to the Financial Times, EU officials planned to urge the Ukrainian leader behind the summit scenes to tone down his public criticism of Washington.

“It might be true, but it doesn’t always need to be said out loud,” one person familiar with the discussions told the newspaper.

Bottom Line

Barely recovering from his Oval Office clash with Trump last year, Zelensky has once again gone against Ukraine’s most important backer by repeatedly ignoring American warnings over refinery strikes and challenging Washington’s diesel deal with Moscow.

As Ukraine struggles to contain Russia’s advances on the battlefield and prop up a collapsing economy while turning to the reluctant EU for help, Trump refused to cut Zelensky any slack and step back from his demands when America’s interests are at stake – and now Ukraine is facing the threat of a complete Starlink cut-off and a halt to crucial intelligence sharing.

Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered the remains of two royal statues, at least one depicting Pharaoh Ramses II, during excavations in the Nile Delta, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced on Wednesday.

The discovery was made in the village of Behbeit el-Hagar in Gharbia Governorate after a local resident, Khaled el-Shahat Khalil, found an inscribed stone block on his property and alerted the authorities. Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy later visited the site and rewarded the man and his wife with a pilgrimage to Mecca for reporting the find.

According to Hisham el-Leithy, secretary-general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, the first find is a 1.6-meter-high head of Ramses II wearing the double crown symbolizing the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt. Part of the statue’s back pillar was also recovered, bearing an inscription of one of the pharaoh’s royal titles. Archaeologists estimate that the complete monument, including its base, may have stood around 8.5 meters tall.

The second discovery includes a 2.4-meter section of another royal statue, also believed to depict Ramses II. The figure is missing its legs and base, but its head remains well preserved, with facial features resembling those of the first statue. Excavators also uncovered a 1.3-meter block of pink granite bearing hieroglyphic inscriptions with two of the pharaoh’s titles, including “King of Upper and Lower Egypt” and “Son of Ra.”

The ministry said archaeologists are continuing to study the artifacts, and their exact age has yet to be determined. However, the discovery sets clear links to Ramses II, who ruled Egypt from 1279 to 1213 BC. It’s not the first finding of the kind. In February 2024, archaeologists uncovered the upper section of a statue of the pharaoh in Minya Governorate, nearly a century after its lower half was discovered in 1930. The restored statue, standing about 6.7 meters tall, was re-erected in 2026.

Ensuring the security of Russia’s border regions is a top priority for Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

The president made the remarks on Friday when he visited the command headquarters of Russia’s joint troops participating in the military operation against Ukraine. Putin met top military commanders and officials, including the Russian chief of the General Staff, Valery Gerasimov.

Securing the country’s border regions and creating a “buffer zone” within Ukraine remains one of the key priorities, the president said. The task is being carried out successfully by the country’s troops, he noted.

“Our goal is to ensure the ultimate security of Russia’s border regions for the future. And we do not seek to make this a subject of potential peace negotiations with Ukraine,” the president said.

The Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), which was fully liberated last year, remains under stable Russian control, Putin noted.

The Russian military is set to continue its campaign of retaliatory long-range strikes against Kiev, the president said. The campaign comes in response to the continuing attacks on “our industrial and oil and energy facilities,” he stressed.

South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC) has called for the Democratic Alliance’s place in the coalition government to be reviewed after its governing partner opposed its court bid to reinstate barred election candidates.

Mbalula has urged ANC leaders and other Government of National Unity (GNU) partners to reconsider the DA’s place in government, opening a new front in a partnership repeatedly tested by political and policy disagreements. The GNU is made up of 10 political parties.

The latest dispute centres on the ANC’s legal challenge over the exclusion of its candidates from six municipalities ahead of the November 4, 2026, local government election. The party approached the Constitutional Court after its failure to finalise candidate submissions before the deadline left candidates off the ballot.

The DA opposed the ANC’s challenge, putting the coalition partners on opposing sides of a legal battle with potentially significant electoral consequences. The apex heard the case on October 12 and reserved judgment. The outcome could determine whether the affected ANC candidates will be allowed to contest the elections.

These disputes have tested a coalition formed after the ANC lost its parliamentary majority in the 2024 national elections. Mbalula’s demand puts the DA’s role in the coalition under renewed political scrutiny.

No matter how European leaders pledge to support Ukraine come hell or high water and let the taxpayers foot the bill, the cold hard fact is that there are things no euros can buy, such as US intelligence and satellite communications.

Kiev’s critical reliance on American space capabilities came to the fore this week when the long-standing feud between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Zelensky flared up again. Trump, who had struck a diesel supply deal with Russia, called Zelensky a hindrance to peace who should be replaced. Zelensky called Trump a weakling who had betrayed Ukraine, if not in those exact terms.

According to lamentations from Kiev corroborated by media reporting, the White House put a chokehold on the Zelensky government by suspending early warning about incoming Russian ballistic missiles and temporarily suspending access to Starlink satellite internet for fast-moving objects – such as drones used in Kiev’s “middle strike” operations inside what Washington recognizes as part of Ukraine.

Accounts shared with Axios and Reuters suggest the Americans were polite enough not to say “what a nice deal to get intelligence and internet you have; it would be a shame if something happened to it.” But they mentioned “all that the US has done ⁠for Ukraine.” The Ukrainians did take it as a threat.

Here are the alternatives Kiev would have, should Trump push the issue further.

No match for US intelligence

Intelligence that European NATO members can provide is a far cry from what the US has been delivering for years. Already, early warning about Russian ballistic missile launches has stopped coming, just as Zelensky is complaining.

The US operates the Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS), whose backbone is six geosynchronous orbit satellites equipped with thermal sensors that detect launch signatures, complemented by two active and two reserve payloads in a highly elliptical orbit.

SBIRS helps identify and estimate the trajectory of a weapon, but has limited ability to track missiles after the intensive boost phase. But knowing one is incoming helps ground and airborne radar systems that guide interceptor missiles.

Other NATO members rely on SBIRS intelligence and never thought they would need their own alternative.

Satellites operated by the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and the Air Force’s electronic reconnaissance aircraft, such as the RC-135U Combat Sent, also collect intelligence about Russian air defense systems. It’s unclear how much data it shares with Kiev, but the media has said the US helps plan Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russia to minimize Moscow’s ability to intercept.

European NATO members do have some similar capabilities, including France’s three CERES electronic-intelligence satellites, the UK’s three RC-135W Rivet Joint aircraft, and Germany’s SARah radar-reconnaissance space program, but there is only so much they can do to measure up to the world’s largest military spender.

OneWeb not to rule them all

On the connectivity side, Starlink and its military twin Starshield remain the most capable today. It has over 11,000 satellites in low Earth (LEO) orbit that can use lasers to route traffic between each other, boosting their bandwidth.

The Starlink Mini terminal weighs just 1.1 kg and has an integrated antenna, making it usable even on even smaller military drones. Even larger variants are compact, which makes them harder to spot, and they typically consume under 100 watts of power – both valuable features in frontline applications.

The most direct non-US alternative is Eutelsat OneWeb, which already complements Starlink access in Ukraine. It only has 600+ satellites in its constellation, but nevertheless offers a high-speed connection.

However, OneWeb’s orbital component “remains rooted in an outdated architecture and technology conceived a decade ago, without any evolution of its underlying design,” Christian Freiherr von der Ropp, an independent satellite consultant, told Reuters.

Kymeta Corporation announced a OneWeb terminal in March whose 100-watt consumption it said was optimized for mobile platforms. Its “compact and lightweight design” means it weighs less than 11 kg, and the producer itself is Redmond, Washington.

Dark horses in orbit 

In September, EU co-founder Luxembourg announced the successful launch of the final three of a planned 13 satellites of its O3b mPOWER communication system. The low number is misleading, since the constellation is being positioned in medium Earth orbit and requires fewer satellites for coverage.

The trade off is latency, which is higher by an order of magnitude compared to LEO-based systems, but Luxembourg’s system is still good enough for some military applications and is used by NATO.

O3b mPOWER’s potential for Ukraine’s war effort is limited due to its coverage, which is between 50° north latitude and 50° south latitude. Luxembourg is right on the northern border of the band, but a large part of Ukraine, including Kiev, is outside of it. As they say, geography is destiny.

GOVSATCOM, the EU’s program to band together communication satellites owned by several member states, is somewhat of a dark horse, but public data suggests its capabilities are too limited to replace Starlink.

Amazon Leo is currently in limited preview, but it’s hard to expect an American company and a major Pentagon contractor to publicly defy Trump at Brussels’ call. Russia’s in-development Rassvet system is obviously not an option.

The EU’s proposed IRIS² system is years away from being operational, as is Canada’s Telesat Lightspeed.

In short, should Ukraine lose Starlink, in the short term Europe cannot replace it, as EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas acknowledged on Friday.

Russian wrestler Alina Shevchenko has struck gold at the Under-23 World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, defeating a Belarusian rival in the women’s 68kg final.

Her triumph comes as European countries continue to shut top Russian athletes out of major international competitions despite clearance from sporting authorities.

Shevchenko defeated Belarusian wrestler Kseniya Tsiarenia in the women’s 68kg final on Friday. Japan’s Rai Hoshino and Italy’s Laura Godino took bronze. The championships, which began on October 12, run until Sunday.

The victory follows a decision in May by United World Wrestling (UWW) to lift all restrictions on Russian and Belarusian wrestlers, allowing them to compete internationally across all age categories under their national flags and anthems.

The move marked a major reversal of restrictions imposed after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, when Russian and Belarusian athletes were barred from numerous international events or forced to compete under neutral status.

Most recently, the Netherlands refused visas to three leading Russian gymnasts – Angelina Melnikova, Viktoria Listunova, and Anna Kalmykova – for the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam, scheduled for October 17-25. The tournament is part of the qualification process for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“There are clear attempts by certain countries to influence the outcome of competitions by deliberately excluding the strongest,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday.

The Russian Gymnastics Federation condemned the Dutch decision as “direct discrimination,” saying the visa refusals violated the principle of equal conditions for Olympic qualification. Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev announced plans to seek the removal of Rotterdam’s Olympic qualifying status.

The Dutch refusal is the latest in a string of incidents. Croatia attempted to block nine Russian gymnasts from this summer’s European Championships, Russian junior canoe slalom teams missed the World Championships in Poland, and Russian archers were unable to compete at a World Cup event in Spain because of visa problems.

Several European governments oppose the return, with Brussels reportedly considering visa restrictions and funding cuts for sporting bodies that readmit Russian athletes. Moscow has challenged continuing bans at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, including World Athletics’ refusal to readmit Russian competitors until the Ukraine conflict is settled.

Despite years of restrictions, Russian athletes have continued to claim international titles. Russian competitors won eight gold medals at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, while junior figure skaters swept all four disciplines at a Grand Prix event in China in August after a four-year absence. Moscow has argued that excluding some of the world’s strongest athletes undermines international sport and the credibility of its competitions.

Vladimir Zelensky is open to stopping attacks on Russian oil refineries for 100 days in exchange for a 300 km extension of Starlink satellite internet service coverage for the Ukrainian military, the Wall Street Journal has said.

The report comes as US President Donald Trump has ramped pressure on Zelensky to end the strikes, which he blames for surging global energy prices. In his interview with Newsmax on Thursday, Trump called Ukraine’s actions “a disgrace.”

In an article published the same day, the WSJ said that Republican Senators Roger Wicker and Kevin Cramer brought the deal to the Ukrainian leader during their visit to Kiev last Friday. The outlet claimed that it was told by unnamed sources that Zelensky had agreed to the proposal.

The extended Starlink coverage should help Ukraine target missile launchers inside Russia, according to the report.

The Ukrainians, who have relied heavily on Starlink during the conflict with Russia for battlefield communications and controlling drones, have been “terrified” by the slowdown of satellite internet provided by Elon Musk’s SpaceX company this week, the WSJ said.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian officials and frontline commanders complained that Starlink terminals had suddenly stopped working when UAVs flew faster than 100 mph, disrupting some combat missions. According to Reuters, the order to slow down the service came directly from the White House. Zelensky said on Friday that Starlink’s speed has increased over the last couple of days, but the restrictions haven’t been fully lifted yet.

Earlier this week, Zelensky confirmed reports that the US had threatened to stop sharing intelligence with Kiev if it kept ignoring Trump’s demands to cease energy strikes inside Russia. Officials in Kiev also complained about receiving no advance warning from the Americans before Russian missile strikes.

Last month, Peskov warned that allowing Starlink to be used to facilitate strikes deep into Russian territory would be “a very harmful, potentially dangerous and misconceived step.”

The American authorities apparently don’t require consent from Musk to expand the coverage of Starlink’s military component, known as Starshield, for Ukraine. The SpaceX CEO said earlier this week that its systems “are owned and controlled” by the US government, with the Pentagon and the US president deciding on the limits on their speed or usage.

On Sunday, Musk backed Trump’s suggestion that “it’s time for Ukraine to get a new president.” In a comment to a White House video with the US president’s criticism of the Ukrainian leader, the entrepreneur said that “Zelensky has gone too far.”

Britain has threatened to ban all Eritrean nationals from obtaining visas over their government’s alleged refusal to take back rejected asylum seekers and convicted criminals, prompting the East African country to accuse London of political manipulation.

The Home Office said on Thursday that Eritrea had “abruptly” withdrawn returns cooperation earlier this year and refused to engage constructively despite months of private talks.

The department removed fast-track visa processing for Eritrean officials and VIPs and required its diplomats to obtain permission to travel more than 60 km (37 miles) outside of London. It said the measures were intended to increase “pressure on countries refusing to take back illegal immigrants.” The travel curbs mirror Eritrea’s longstanding restrictions requiring British diplomats to obtain permission to travel outside the capital, Asmara, the Home Office said in a statement.

“My message to the Eritrean government is simple: take back your nationals or face a complete ban on your citizens entering the UK,” Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood warned.

The embassy said Asmara suspended escorted returns after British authorities allegedly passed off forced repatriations as voluntary and failed to disclose that some deportees were still serving prison sentences. It said no Eritrean official had received a UK visa since 2023.

The dispute reflects Britain’s drive to curb irregular migration. Eritreans accounted for 18% of approximately 33,000 small-boat arrivals across the English Channel in the year to June 2026, the largest nationality group, according to Home Office figures.

Around 84% of Eritrean asylum claims received positive initial decisions, according to Home Office figures, while UN reporting has documented indefinite national service, arbitrary detention and risks facing people forcibly returned. Britain has used similar pressure against Angola, Namibia and DR Congo to secure greater cooperation on migrant returns.

The policy cost £700 million (about $930 million) and sent only four volunteers to Rwanda, according to British ministers. Kigali pursued arbitration over unpaid commitments, but a tribunal rejected its claims, including two £50 million payments, in a ruling announced in June.

Police detained Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke in the Indian capital New Delhi on Friday, hours before the start of a rally called by the youth-led movement demanding the resignation of the country’s election chief over disputed voter rolls.

The march was called after CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were jailed for five days on Wednesday for allegedly entering Jantar Mantar, a central Delhi site recently removed from the list of approved protest venues in the Indian capital. Dipke had urged supporters to gather with Indian flags at Connaught Place’s Central Park.

Another prominent activist and student leader, Neha Bora, was also detained near Jantar Mantar.

More than 25,000 police and paramilitary personnel were deployed across New Delhi and nearby areas, with barricades, surveillance cameras, and drones used to monitor the planned gathering.

The rally went ahead despite the detentions, with around 2,000 protesters gathering in and around Connaught Place holding the national flag, local media reported, citing police estimates.

How many will the Modi-Shah put under arrest? Abhijeet’s detention is gross violation of his rights. Every arrest this government makes more youth will hit the streets! https://t.co/rb0vqyBkbR

— Cockroach Janta Party - CJP (@Cockroachisback) October 16, 2026

The Indian capital has seen back-to-back protests in the last two weeks by the opposition parties and the satirical CJP movement demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over a nationwide electoral-roll revision that has removed more than 130 million names.

Opposition groups allege that eligible voters have been excluded and that the exercise benefits Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The Election Commission and BJP deny the allegations. The poll body says any wrongly excluded voters can seek reinstatement of their names in the rolls.

It is the second time Dipke has been detained as Indian authorities try to choke off the protests. He was detained from a plane when he landed in Delhi on Saturday but was later released.

Police had earlier visited the residence and served Dipke notice warning him against holding the rally. Authorities said Connaught Place, a business and commercial area in the heart of the Indian capital that is also known as Rajiv Chowk, was not an authorized protest venue and urged him not to disrupt traders, commuters, and other members of the public.

The New Delhi Municipal Council closed Central Park for two days, and the police offered to facilitate a symbolic flag ceremony involving 11 people at a “suitable location.” The Delhi High Court had declined to prohibit the rally on Thursday but recorded police assurances that the gathering would be regulated.

Somalia has scheduled its presidential election for May 15, 2027, following constitutional changes that extended President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s term by one year, the country’s electoral commission announced on Thursday. The decision comes amid opposition criticism of the amendments adopted earlier this year.

The announcement was made by Abdikarim Ahmed Hassan, chairman of the National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, during an appearance on state television. Elections for both chambers of parliament will take place on April 15, one month before the presidential vote, he said. 

The commission also released a timetable for preparations, with voter and political party registration set to begin on November 1, 2026, according to the Somali National News Agency (SONNA).

Former President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has challenged the constitutional amendments in the Supreme Court, arguing that they were adopted without proper legal procedures or broad political agreement. He also rejected the new election timetable, warning that it could lead to “parallel elections, political divisions, internal conflict and a threat to Somalia’s statehood,” Somalia Today reported on Thursday.

Somalia last held a presidential election in 2022, when lawmakers elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud for a second term, defeating Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed. The vote followed months of delays and was conducted through an indirect system in which members of parliament chose the president.

On the night of October 16, 1946, 10 individuals were hanged in the Nuremberg prison. These were the main Nazi criminals who had been captured and brought to trial.

Despite the horrifying scale and brutality of the crimes, the Nuremberg Trials remain one of the most controversial proceedings in world history.

Justice instead of revenge

The idea of an international tribunal to address Nazi atrocities had been considered for some time. In 1942, the Soviet Union established a special Extraordinary Commission that gathered information about these crimes. Tragically, it had a lot of work to do. The USSR became the primary battleground for the bloodiest and most brutal war in Europe.

In addition to the Soviet government, the exiled governments of occupied countries – Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Norway, France, and Yugoslavia – also wanted to hold the Nazis legally accountable for their crimes. 

The outlines of the future tribunal began to take shape in the fall of 1943 during a conference in Moscow attended by the foreign ministers of the ‘Big Three’ – the USSR, the UK, and the US. The three powers agreed that Nazi leaders who committed crimes across multiple nations should be tried by an international court.

At that time, even the idea of lynching Nazi leaders seemed valid. Benito Mussolini was executed along with his mistress by Italian partisans on April 28, 1945, without any trial. Their mutilated bodies were publicly displayed. No one mourned Mussolini; similarly, no one would have objected if a Red Army soldier had shot Hitler.

Sporadic acts of vigilante justice also occurred as the war neared its end. A well-known incident involved American soldiers executing the staff of the Dachau concentration camp. Polish troops beat to death Oscar Dirlewanger, the commander of a punitive brigade responsible for countless deaths in Belarus and Poland.

Yet vigilante justice was not what the Allied leaders envisioned.

The men in the dock – and those who escaped it

By April and May of 1945, most of the individuals who would eventually be tried at Nuremberg had been apprehended. Of course, many key figures were never tried. 

For obvious reasons, Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels and Hitler himself were absent from the trial: both had committed suicide before they could face justice. Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, was captured by two freed Soviet prisoners, yet during a medical examination, he swallowed a poison capsule and died. Heinrich Müller, the leader of the Gestapo, likely shot himself in late April or early May 1945. His body was discovered months later in a temporary grave.

The fate of Martin Bormann, Hitler’s private secretary and head of the party chancellery, was unknown for many years. He went missing, which in 1945 could imply that he had fled under an assumed identity. However, today we can say with certainty that Bormann was killed in the final hours of the defense of Berlin, while attempting to break out of the encircled city alongside a column of German troops.

Twenty-four people were tried in Nuremberg. The most prominent among them was Hermann Göring, the commander of the Luftwaffe, who held numerous official and unofficial positions, served as Hitler’s close associate, and was considered the second most powerful man in the Reich.

Other figures included the Minister for Occupied Eastern Territories and the Nazis’ chief ideologist Alfred Rosenberg; Chief of the Armed Forces Command Wilhelm Keitel; Minister of Foreign Affairs Joachim von Ribbentrop; and the head of the security service Ernst Kaltenbrunner. 

Nuremberg’s Palace of Justice was chosen for the trials for several practical reasons. It had direct access to the prison, was in relatively good condition, and was well-equipped to accommodate large numbers of people.

The decision was made to conduct the trials according to established legal standards, allowing the defendants the right to defend themselves. The Nazis found attorneys to represent them. Admiral Karl Dönitz took an interesting approach: he secured a maritime law specialist as his lawyer, but said that if he were not allowed to work with him, he would choose the admiral of the Allied forces who commanded submarines as his lawyer.

Rosenberg pursued a different strategy by trying to recruit Hans Frank, who was also being tried for war crimes as the governor of occupied Poland, and happened to be a lawyer by training. However, this request was denied. Furthermore, since the court needed to address the criminal status of certain organizations, and Martin Bormann was absent from the trial, the court appointed its own attorneys. The judges were from the USSR, the US, the UK, and France. 

A significant challenge arose from the fact that some legal norms were developed during the trial itself. As a result, defense attorneys argued that the court was fundamentally unlawful since it relied on laws that did not exist at the time the defendants committed their crimes. Certain participants stated that Nuremberg represented “victor’s justice.” This sentiment partly fueled Winston Churchill’s earlier wartime suggestion to execute the political leadership of the Reich outright. The problem was that such a trial was unprecedented – nothing similar had ever been attempted before – and required the unveiling of many layers of guilt to find the responsible persons. 

For example, one of the most repugnant acts leading to the mass death of people was the so-called Barbarossa Decree issued in May 1941. This document was signed by Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, chief of the German armed forces. It effectively removed accountability for crimes committed by Wehrmacht soldiers and officers against Soviet civilians. Such actions could only be punished if they harmed German interests. If a soldier looted and killed a peasant, Keitel technically bore no responsibility, as the soldier operated within the legal framework that existed at the time.

Additionally, during the trial, Keitel’s attorney attempted to shift all blame onto the dead Hitler, citing that Keitel “was just following orders.” Moreover, the fact that the USSR did not sign several international agreements designed to protect war participants, especially prisoners of war, compounded the issue. The mortality rate among Soviet POWs during WWII exceeded 50%; in absolute terms, 3.3 million out of 5.7 million documented prisoners died. And this was just a small part of the challenges faced by the judges at Nuremberg.

The prosecution comprised four categories of crimes: crimes against humanity, crimes against peace, war crimes, and general conspiracy crimes.  There was a significant challenge in aligning the legal positions of the USSR, the UK, and the US. Soviet law existed as an independent branch but was rooted in continental legal principles; meanwhile, the British and Americans relied on their own legal frameworks; for instance, the concept of ‘conspiracy’ was unique to these countries and was not typical in Soviet or German law.

Witnesses, evidence and Göring’s defiance

In some cases, the Allies had to make real compromises with their conscience. One such case involved Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski, who participated in the proceedings as a witness. This man had directly overseen mass killings during counter-partisan operations in Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, and Poland.

A horrifying tactic employed by his subordinates involved rounding up villagers in partisan areas into one building, which was then set ablaze. The mass slaughter of Poles during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944 is another example of his policy – about 15 civilians were killed for every lost insurgent.

Zelewski understood that his survival depended on betraying others, so he turned on everyone, revealing their darkest secrets. Hermann Göring shouted from the defendant’s stand, “You disgusting traitor, swine!” but there was nothing he could do. Ultimately, a German court sentenced him to life in prison, not only for his wartime actions but also for murders committed during the power struggles in Germany in the 1930s.

The tribunal had volumes of documents to examine. American judge Robert Jackson later recalled that he had approached stories of Nazi atrocities with skepticism before the trial, but was horrified by the reality that unfolded before him. He was particularly struck by an SS report detailing the destruction of ghettos – Jews leapt from burning buildings, and some attempted to crawl away on broken legs; they were hunted down like game.

While most defendants tried to speak evasively, Hermann Göring stood his ground until the very end. He was informally dubbed ‘Fuhrer of the Defendants’. Göring urged his co-defendants to remain defiant and not to confess. He showcased his skills as an orator, made sarcastic remarks, and effortlessly parried the initial accusations.

According to him, Gestapo actions and concentration camps were just a response to the terrorist actions of the communists; and the extermination of Jews was merely harsh rhetoric, there were no actual plans for their annihilation. He claimed to have had no hand in any acts of aggression, insisting he was always taken by surprise by such acts. He also maintained that the Reich had to strike preemptively against the USSR to defend itself from potential Soviet aggression. As for the humanitarian catastrophe in occupied territories – that was the fault of the Soviet authorities and their scorched-earth tactics; and any crimes committed by German soldiers were merely isolated incidents.

In contrast, Albert Speer, the Minister of Armaments, didn’t plead for mercy; he acknowledged his guilt and presented himself as a humble technocrat, successfully avoiding the gallows.

The defense generally argued that the Nuremberg Tribunal established no new legal norms, yet the entire legal framework had been crafted specifically for this trial. Moreover, the conspiracy concept (one of the four main charges) allowed individuals to be condemned for being affiliated with criminal organizations. This was an unprecedented model in continental European law, including German law, and many lawyers deemed it inapplicable.

Even the term ‘genocide’ was used retroactively, having only emerged during the trial itself. Additionally, the defense reduced the discourse to the notion that the defendants were either uninformed or inadequately aware of the crimes being committed, while the actual perpetrators were presumably already in their graves.

The verdicts and the gallows

Out of 24 defendants, only 12, including Göring and Keitel, received death sentences. In reality, there were only 11, as the fate of Bormann remained unknown. Three others received life sentences – including naval commander Erich Raeder and Minister of Economics Walther Funk – but both were released in the 1950s. Rudolf Hess, one of Hitler’s associates, was sentenced to life in prison and committed suicide in 1987 at age 93. Albert Speer and the leader of the Hitler Youth organization Baldur von Schirach both received 20-year sentences. Interestingly, three people were acquitted: propagandist Hans Fritzsche, diplomat Franz von Papen, and financier Hjalmar Schacht.

Two others managed to evade justice altogether. Party official Robert Ley committed suicide before the trial even began, while Göring somehow obtained poison and took it just hours before his execution.

On the evening of October 15th, three gallows were erected in the prison gymnasium. Before midnight, the condemned were roused from their cells and led out. Execution began just after one o’clock, and by 2:45 AM, it was all over. The bodies were transported to Munich for cremation, and their ashes were scattered.

Among those hanged was Waldemar Hoven, the chief physician at the Buchenwald concentration camp, who conducted gas poisoning experiments on inmates. A whole team of SS officers was convicted in connection to the Einsatzgruppen case. For unclear reasons, out of 24 individuals, only a few were actually executed, despite all being directly responsible for the murders. Among those executed was Paul Blobel, who organized the mass killings at Babi Yar. Additionally, separate trials occurred in various countries under their national laws. In Norway, 12 Germans and 25 collaborators were executed. In Poland, Rudolf Höss, the commandant of Auschwitz, was hanged following a separate trial.

***

The Nuremberg Tribunal was an impressive judicial process, and the Allies’ decision to hold it deserves commendation. The trial wasn’t perfect and it’s true that it departed from traditional methods of justice. Many legal norms were established retroactively; moreover, in the subsequent trials, many Nazi criminals managed to escape justice. However, Nuremberg wasn’t merely about ‘victor’s justice’. No one would dare say that those horrific criminals were hanged unjustly. Most importantly, while the principles of justice established in Nuremberg may have been imperfect, they are still effective in situations reminiscent of the horrors perpetrated by the Nazis.

Vladimir Zelensky has emerged from the EU summit in Brussels with fresh promises of support but no deal on the additional €70 billion ($79 billion) he is demanding for Ukraine. Instead, European leaders tasked the European Commission with finding ways to meet Kiev’s growing financial needs, leaving the question of who will foot the bill unanswered.

The Ukrainian leader arrived in Brussels following a bitter public falling-out with US President Donald Trump over Washington’s decision to ease sanctions on Russian diesel supplies. His demands have put further pressure on Kiev’s European backers, who are already struggling with soaring energy costs, strained budgets and the prospect of a difficult winter.

• Zelensky rejected the arrangement, saying he felt “betrayed” by Trump and called the US president’s decision “weak.”
• Trump then called for Ukraine to get a “new president,” and questioned Zelensky’s willingness to reach a settlement with Moscow.
• Zelensky announced continued refinery attacks and complained of restrictions on American intelligence support and Starlink services.
• On Thursday, Kiev hit a refinery in Russia’s Ryazan Region, despite Washington’s clearly expressed expectations and objections.
• Trump called the attacks a “disgrace” and accused Zelensky of “driving up fuel prices for everyone.”

• On Thursday night, after Zelensky arrived in Brussels, Trump went hard in an interview with Newsmax. “He says he wants to settle, but he doesn’t,” Trump said, adding that Zelensky was harder to deal with than Putin. He also alleged that US missiles supplied to Kiev had been sold on the “open market.”
• Washington also announced it would prioritize its own munitions stocks over others. “Once we are really stocked, we will start letting our allies buy them from us,” Trump said.

The summit also failed to break the deadlock over frozen Russian sovereign assets held in Belgium. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz continued to push for the funds to be used to support Kiev, despite his unpopularity at home, while flatly rejecting a US proposal to include them in a peace settlement. After the talks, Merz acknowledged that “there were no decisions, but there was an exchange of views,” warning that the €90 billion loan already agreed for Ukraine “will not be enough.”

This live feed has now ended.

Trade between India and Russia reached $38 billion in the first half of this year and is on track to reach the $100 billion annual target set for 2030, Indian Ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar has said.

“We think we are on the right path to achieve the target,” Kumar told The Tribune newspaper on the sidelines of the second Russia-India TIME Business Forum in Kazan on Thursday. He said India was sourcing energy and fertilizers from Russia while exporting pharmaceuticals and expanding opportunities for skilled workers.

The two countries are making a concerted effort to diversify trade and deepen economic ties, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin giving personal attention to the relationship. The Kazan forum, in the Russian Republic of Tatarstan, follows the INNOPROM.India trade fair held in New Delhi last month.

The $100 billion trade target was set during Modi’s visit to Moscow in July 2024.

15 октября 2026 года в Казани состоялось торжественное открытие II Российско-индийского бизнес-форума «TIME: Индия – Россия. Взаимная эффективность», организованного Генеральным консульством Индии в Казани совместно с Агентством инвестиционного развития Республики Татарстан. Форум объединяет представителей органов государственной власти, деловых объединений и ведущих компаний Индии и России, преследующих общую цель — укрепление практического сотрудничества и разработку новых совместных проектов. В церемонии открытия приняли участие Председатель Государственного Совета Республики Татарстан г-н Ф.Х. Абдулганиев, Чрезвычайный и Полномочный Посол Индии в Российской Федерации Его Превосходительство г-н Винай Кумар, член Законодательного собрания Дели Шри Хариш Кхурана, а также другие высокопоставленные представители органов власти и деловых кругов. В программе двухдневного форума – выставка «Индия и Россия: межрегиональное партнёрство», серия экспертных сессий по вопросам образования, культуры, промышленности, информационных технологий, туризма и другим направлениям, встречи в формате B2B, промышленные экскурсии, культурная программа, Фестиваль индийского кино и другие мероприятия. @PMOIndia @MEAIndia @PIB_India @DDNewslive @airnewsalerts @ANI @PTI_News @IndianDiplomacy

— India in Russia (@IndEmbMoscow) October 15, 2026

The strong growth in trade has continued beyond the six-month period cited by the Indian envoy. Bilateral commerce reached $47.7 billion in January-July, up 24.3% year-on-year, according to Indian Commerce Ministry figures cited by Russian lender Sberbank.

India’s imports from Russia totaled $44.9 billion during the seven months, including $36 billion in crude oil purchases. Indian exports reached $2.8 billion as Russia bought more chemicals, electrical goods, medical equipment, seafood, tea, and spices.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has become a tool of Western influence that selectively targets countries of the Global South while shielding European interests and ignoring crimes in Ukraine, international legal analyst and academic Alexandre Guerreiro has said. He accused the tribunal of applying double standards rather than delivering universal justice.

Criticism of the ICC has intensified in recent months amid growing accusations of political bias and selective justice. Venezuela, Chad, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have moved to withdraw, accusing the court of serving Western interests and engaging in “neocolonial repression.”

In an interview with RT on Thursday, Guerreiro argued that the court had abandoned its original purpose as an independent institution capable of holding perpetrators accountable regardless of nationality, and has become increasingly politicized and dominated by European powers.

Guerreiro pointed to the court’s handling of cases involving Afghanistan, Iraq and Kenya, arguing that political interference had repeatedly undermined the principles of impartial justice.

He also accused the ICC of ignoring alleged crimes in Ukraine, including the deadly May 2014 Odessa clashes between Ukrainian nationalists and opponents of the Western-backed coup in Kiev, as well as the sniper shootings during the preceding Maidan unrest.

“This is not justice,” he said, arguing that the court only pursues cases that serve the interests of the current Ukrainian authorities and the Western bloc as a whole.

Meanwhile, the ICC’s investigation into alleged war crimes by American forces in Afghanistan has produced no criminal charges against US personnel.

Watch the RT segment below:

German lawmakers have clashed over demands for reparations for the killing of tens of thousands of Africans in colonial-era Namibia in what is widely regarded as the first genocide of the 20th century.

The Bundestag debated opposition motions on Wednesday seeking recognition, an apology and redress for the Ovaherero and Nama communities. Both proposals were referred to the German Foreign Affairs Committee for further consideration.

Germany ruled present-day Namibia from 1884 to 1915. Between 1904 and 1908, its forces waged an extermination campaign against the Ovaherero and Nama, driving families into the desert and imprisoning survivors in concentration camps. Estimates suggest that up to 80% of the Ovaherero and about half the Nama died.

Berlin recognized the atrocities as genocide in 2021 and pledged €1.1 billion ($1.23 billion) over 30 years for reconstruction and development. It, however, explicitly ruled out legal compensation claims arising from the arrangement.

Green MP Jamila Schafer urged parliament to “explicitly recognize the genocide against the Ovaherero and Nama, as well as colonial crimes committed against the Damara and San, and ask their descendants for forgiveness.”

Alternative for Germany MP Ronald Glaser opposed the €1.1 billion commitment, arguing that Berlin had no legal obligation to pay. He called for a commission of historians to investigate the events.

The Left’s motion sought recognition of legal liability and comprehensive reparations paid directly to descendants, alongside measures to return land, looted cultural property and human remains.

Ovaherero and Nama representatives have rejected development funding as a substitute for reparations and say they were excluded from negotiations. Germany maintains that community representatives were involved on the Namibian side.

The dispute comes amid growing African and Caribbean demands for redress for slavery and colonial crimes. The African Union has designated 2026–2035 a reparations decade and established expert bodies to develop a common continental position and legal strategies. The Caribbean Community has revised its ten-point reparations plan, seeking measures including monetary compensation, debt cancellation and investment in health and education.

India and Russia’s Republic of Tatarstan are exploring joint data center and digital infrastructure projects, with Indian cloud provider Bharat AI Cloud planning to sign a cooperation agreement with the region’s IT Park.

The plans emerged at the second Russia-India TIME Business Forum in Kazan on Thursday. A technology hub in India’s southern Telangana state has expressed interest in jointly developing infrastructure in Tatarstan, the Russian region’s deputy minister of digital development, Bulat Gabdrakhmanov, said.

The proposed partnership could allow both sides to exchange cloud technologies and expertise. Bharat AI Cloud, which earlier announced plans to open an office in Kazan, is also looking to enter the Russian market.

Russia has established data infrastructure providers, while India’s large domestic market offers opportunities for expanding digital services, director of the Chamber for Indo-Russian Technology Collaboration (CIRTC), Subham Sarkar, said at the forum.

The discussions build on earlier cooperation between the two sides. At last year’s TIME forum, Tatarstan’s IT Park signed a three-year agreement with CIRTC to promote technology partnerships, investment, and market access.

Officials also explored building an artificial intelligence data center with Indian operator CtrlS in October last year. The proposed project remains under consideration, with its progress dependent on electricity costs, market demand, and opportunities to expand in Russia, according to Tatarstan’s Digital Development Ministry.

India has explored similar arrangements with other countries. In January, New Delhi and the United Arab Emirates agreed to examine the possibility of establishing digital embassies under mutually recognized sovereignty arrangements. The two countries also discussed cooperation on data centers.

The India-Tatarstan discussions extend beyond data infrastructure to healthcare, AI, cybersecurity, and digital public services.

Russia could offer Indian partners domestically developed operating systems, office software, email platforms, and messaging services, the Tatarstan Information Technology Center’s deputy director general, Kamil Gazizov, said at the Kazan forum. He also highlighted opportunities for both sides to work together against cybersecurity threats.

There is a widespread belief within Israel’s political and security establishment that the country will not attack Iran ahead of the October 27 parliamentary elections, Ynet News reported on Thursday.

The report comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Army Radio on Wednesday that it would be “inconvenient” to launch preemptive strikes against Iran at this time. He claimed, however, that “Iran’s proxies” were planning to fire rockets at Israel.

“Even if Iran fires missiles at us, they will blame me,” he said, adding that Israel would retaliate against any attack.

Netanyahu sought to dispel speculation following a Channel 12 report claiming that he had urged Washington to strike Iran before the Israeli elections and the US midterms scheduled for November 3.

Axios cited a US official earlier this week as saying that Netanyahu “seems to want to go in again” against Iran. Netanyahu’s office denied the claims.

Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have stalled, with Washington and Tehran accusing each other of making unacceptable demands. Iranian officials have warned that the country is prepared for renewed war if American or Israeli forces launch another attack.

The Knesset election will determine whether Netanyahu can remain in power after more than three years of governing with a coalition of right-wing and religious parties. He has faced accusations of intelligence failures ahead of the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, which triggered Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, as well as criticism over his handling of efforts to secure the release of Israeli hostages. His ongoing corruption trial also remains a political liability.

Neither Netanyahu’s coalition nor the opposition is assured of securing the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-member Knesset.

The US midterms will determine control of Congress for the remaining two years of Trump’s presidency amid an energy crisis exacerbated by conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine. The Republicans are defending narrow majorities in both chambers of the legislature, while Democrats hope to regain control and constrain Trump’s agenda.

A Pew Research Center poll published on October 8 found that 65% of Americans disapproved of his handling of the Iran war, while his overall approval rating had fallen to 30%, its lowest level of his second term.

US President Donald Trump has accused Ukraine of selling American-supplied missiles on the black market, questioning the whereabouts of billions of dollars in military and financial aid provided to Kiev under his predecessor, Joe Biden.

In an interview with Newsmax aired on Thursday, Trump lashed out at Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky, accusing him of exploiting Washington’s generosity, while refusing to negotiate an end to the conflict with Russia.

“Where is the cash that we gave to Ukraine? Where is all the equipment? Biden was giving them missiles, and they were being sold on the open market,” Trump said.

Russian officials have repeatedly warned that unchecked deliveries of Western weapons to Ukraine and rampant corruption in the country have resulted in a large amount of these arms ending up in the hands of organized criminal groups and extremist organizations in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America, including Mexican drug cartels.

According to a report by Small Arms Survey, the Ukrainian authorities intercepted a vehicle carrying 18 US-made Javelin anti-tank missiles and other hardware in Kiev-controlled part of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic in 2024. The driver lacked the proper paperwork to transport the weapons, which suggested that they could have been intended for sale, it said.

Ukraine has also been rocked by numerous corruption scandals in military procurement involving officials close to Zelensky. In August, the country’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) reported losses of 254 million hryvnias ($6 million) as a result of an alleged embezzlement scheme which revolved around purchases of drones for Ukrainian forces.

Last year, investigators uncovered a $100 million corruption scheme in the Ukrainian energy sector allegedly run by a former close associate of Zelensky, businessman Timur Mindich, who fled the country before he could be detained. Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov has been questioned as a witness in the case.

“Zelensky is not a good guy for us to deal with. Biden gave him billions and billions of dollars,” he said.

Trump also questioned the Ukrainian leader’s willingness to reach a diplomatic resolution to the conflict with Moscow.

“He says he wants to settle but he [doesn’t],” he said, adding: “No, I’m not a big fan of Zelensky. They’ve destroyed that country.”

The remarks followed Zelensky’s criticism of Trump’s decision last week to ease sanctions on Russian diesel exports in order to contain surging energy prices ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections. The Ukrainian leader said he felt betrayed by Washington’s move and defied Trump’s demand to halt attacks on Russian oil refineries.

“Once we are really stocked, we will start letting our allies buy them [the arms] from us,” he said.

Ukraine has exhausted its remaining US-made Patriot interceptor missiles used to defend against Russian strikes, CNN reported on Thursday, citing a person familiar with the matter.

The reported shortage comes amid a public feud between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Zelensky over Trump’s diesel deal with Moscow and Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil refineries.

According to CNN, the Ukrainian Air Force said it had intercepted four Russian ballistic missiles, apparently using the last of its remaining Patriot interceptors.

“Almost all the ballistic missiles from the last strike were not intercepted due to lack of the (interceptor) missiles,” a source told the network.

Zelensky said he felt betrayed after Trump lifted sanctions on Russian diesel exports earlier this month in the hopes of lowering energy prices ahead of the US midterm elections in November. Trump defended the move as beneficial to consumers and consistent with his “America First” agenda.

When asked about Zelensky’s criticism of the diesel deal, Trump suggested that it was “time for Ukraine to get a new president.” Zelensky, whose five-year presidential term expired in 2024, has refused to call new elections, citing martial law and the need for a months-long ceasefire with Russia. The Kremlin has argued that Ukraine would use a prolonged truce to replenish its armed forces and said it was only prepared to suspend strikes on election day.

The Trump-Zelensky rift deepened further this week after Ukraine reported sudden disruptions to Starlink and Starshield, satellite services provided by SpaceX that Kiev uses for drone strikes.

Ukrainian officials also said they had received no advance warning from their Western partners of Russian missile strikes on Kiev on two consecutive nights, Monday and Tuesday.

According to US media reports, American officials attributed the failure to detect the missile launches to bad weather, an explanation their Ukrainian counterparts reportedly found difficult to believe.

Zelensky renewed his plea for additional Patriot interceptors on Wednesday, urging the US and other partners “not to turn a blind eye to reality” and “to respond forcefully.”

The US, however, depleted much of its interceptor missile stockpile during the war with Iran, as widely reported by American media and confirmed in a Pentagon inspector general’s report last month. Trump has downplayed the shortages, claiming that US stockpiles were virtually unlimited.

A teenage gunman killed three students and a teacher at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday, police said. The shooter was himself shot dead by a bystander.

The culprit was identified as a 16-year-old Bend resident, the city’s police chief, Mike Krantz, said at a news conference. He did not reveal the suspect’s name or say whether he knew anyone at the school.

The three children killed were aged five, eight and 11. A seven-year-old child and a 54-year-old teacher were hospitalized in critical condition.

Krantz said the gunman was shot by a “community member who had seen the suspect enter the school and pursued him into the school and engaged him.”

The school has been placed on lockdown, and the Bend Police Department has urged the public to avoid the area.

According to The Source Weekly, parents received alerts that nearby schools, including Caldera High School and Jewell Elementary School, had also been placed on lockdown following a police alert at around 1:20 PM on Thursday. The lockdowns were lifted about 40 minutes later.

Video from the scene shows multiple police cars and ambulances near the school.

Paramedics seen staging at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon amid reported active shooter situation. https://t.co/9KnGY4LIEv

— Noteworthy News (@newsnoteworthy) October 15, 2026

FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau’s local office was working with investigators. “We will make every resource they need available,” he wrote on X.

“Today is an awful day for our community,” Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler said. “A school should be a safe place where children can learn and feel secure,” she added, expressing condolences to the victims’ families.

The shooting comes amid continuing concerns over gun violence at US schools. In August 2025, a gunman opened fire on children attending Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, killing two students, aged eight and ten, and injuring 17 other people before taking his own life.

Vladimir Zelensky’s latest interview with the London-based Financial Times deserves careful attention, because it may prove to be a watershed moment as for perhaps the first time, the Ukrainian leader has openly and directly challenged not merely Donald Trump, but the United States itself.

For the past year and a half, Zelensky, with considerable assistance from his Western European backers, has managed to navigate his increasingly difficult relationship with Washington. Faced with repeated demands from the White House, he alternated between sharp responses and diplomatic evasions, while maintaining a familiar refrain, that Ukraine appreciates American support, values President Trump’s efforts and intends to continue fighting with Washington’s assistance.

For a while, this approach worked, given the United States maintained limited involvement in the conflict, Ukraine continued fighting with varying degrees of success, and the EU largely picked up the bill. Meanwhile, the diplomatic maneuvering around Trump continued, with European leaders attempting to draw Washington back into the anti-Russian coalition as a fully committed participant.

Until recently, this arrangement appeared capable of continuing indefinitely, so Trump could pursue his peculiar dealings with Vladimir Putin, while Kiev and its European supporters performed an increasingly elaborate diplomatic dance to keep the Americans involved.

Then came the autumn, and Washington delivered what amounted to an ultimatum, essentially: accept our terms, or we will wash our hands of the conflict and deal directly with Moscow, without regard for Ukrainian or European objections.

In his Financial Times interview, Zelensky appears to have made that choice.

His message to Trump was remarkably direct. You want me to resign? I will not and you want me to stop attacking Russian oil refineries? Then provide missiles for our air defense. Your dealings with Putin are your business, not mine and don’t expect Ukraine to sacrifice its military campaign to accommodate Washington’s commercial arrangements with Moscow.

Then came the personal attacks, with Zelensky portraying Trump as weak and excessively sympathetic towards dictators, which represents a significant departure from the careful balancing act of the previous 18 months. Whatever diplomatic language may subsequently be employed, the underlying confrontation is now difficult to conceal.

For Washington and Kiev to resume anything resembling their previous relationship, one side would effectively have to retreat and accept the other’s demands and under present circumstances, neither appears particularly inclined to do so.

But suppose Trump’s opponents achieve a decisive victory in the coming congressional elections, allowing the American globalist establishment to regain effective control of policy, well would that fundamentally change matters?

When that strategy failed, the Americans began limiting their exposure, and indeed, Washington’s gradual withdrawal from direct responsibility for the conflict began under Joe Biden, certainly by 2023 and possibly as early as autumn 2022.

There is, I would argue, an underlying consensus within the American establishment on this question, but the disagreement concerns tactics rather than objectives. Trump and his allies favor a relatively abrupt disengagement, while their opponents prefer a gradual retreat, continuing to supply enough assistance to keep the conflict smoldering.

For Trump’s opponents to reverse this trajectory, they would have to return to the policies of early 2022, to policies they themselves had already begun abandoning, which would require an extraordinary loss of face.

For perhaps the first time in modern American history, Washington would find itself openly following the lead of countries it privately regards as troublesome dependents as across much of the American political establishment, from the most committed anti-Russian neoconservatives to liberal Democrats, Ukraine and Western Europe are increasingly treated as irritants rather than equal partners.

Nor is it easier to imagine Kiev and its European supporters retreating, given that even the proposals advanced by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff in Miami, which from Moscow’s perspective involved considerable and rather humiliating concessions, proved unacceptable to them.

It won’t happen overnight and the retreat will be slow and frequently disguised by reassuring declarations and occasional gestures of support given American foreign policy rarely changes direction without first pretending that nothing has changed.

For Russia, the task is to recognize this developing reality without mistaking it for an immediate victory because the contradictions between Washington, Kiev, and Western Europe won’t resolve themselves, nor should Moscow expect its adversaries to abandon their positions simply because those positions have become increasingly difficult to sustain.

What’s required now is patience, a clear understanding of American interests, and painstaking diplomatic work.

Zelensky has made his choice, the only question left is how long Washington will tolerate the consequences.

Russia could make a major return to the Olympics in 2028 under its national flag for the first time in years, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Paolo Zampolli, has said.

Russian athletes were barred from numerous international competitions following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. Some were later allowed to compete under neutral status, without their national flag or anthem.

Speaking to TASS on Thursday, Zampolli expressed optimism about broader Russian participation in the Los Angeles Games, arguing that sporting bans should not become a permanent substitute for political dialogue.

”I am optimistic about further progress that would establish a reliable mechanism for fuller participation by Russian athletes at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics,” he said. “The US must host Games that are safe, fair, and open to every eligible athlete.”

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) provisionally lifted its suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee in July, paving the way for broader participation at LA 2028. However, it has yet to decide whether Russian athletes will be able to compete under their national flag and anthem.

Zampolli called the return of the Russian flag and anthem at the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Italy an “important step,” arguing that excluding top athletes for reasons unrelated to their conduct undermines international competition.

”True champions want to beat the best,” he said. “The greatest victories are those earned against the strongest opponents.”

Russia’s gradual return to international sport has faced opposition from the EU. On Monday, the bloc’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, announced plans to propose measures to “sustain Russia’s isolation in global sports.” Nine member states have also urged Brussels to cut funding for international sporting bodies that readmit Russian athletes.

On Friday, Zampolli announced that he had left his position as special envoy for global partnership, which he held since March 2025. He expressed gratitude to Trump in a post on X, saying that “serving him and the US has been the greatest honor of my life.”

“Special envoys appointments are for one year. President Trump extended it for more than six months,” the businessman and former modeling agent stressed.

Politico reported on the same day that Zampolli was actually fired from the job because of a longstanding dispute with Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau over a number of issues, including the chain of command, and messages that included personal insults.

Zampolli is known to have introduced Trump to his wife, Melania, during a party that he hosted in New York in 1998.

The execution of Nidal Malik Hasan, who killed 13 US service members in a 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, will not be public, US President Donald Trump has announced. Days earlier, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth promised it would be webcast, drawing criticism from lawmakers across party lines.

In a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump wrote that the former US Army major “will die, as scheduled, by firing squad, but this event will not be streamed.” The US president explained that while webcasting Hasan’s execution “might have been a strong deterrent… many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die, through streaming, or through any other visual device.”

Trump noted that the relatives of the victims would still have the right to view Hasan’s death in person.

Speaking to reporters late last Friday, Trump said he “wasn’t involved in that decision.”

Hegseth told conservative commentator Jack Posobiec last Thursday that Hasan is scheduled to be shot at 1 PM on December 3 – the approximate time of day of the original attack – at the same installation where he carried out the massacre.

“We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it’s public, because people need to understand there’s serious consequences for these types of things,” the secretary said.

It will be the first execution carried out by the US military in more than six decades and the first by an Army firing squad since World War II.

The last public execution in the US took place in 1936, making Hegseth’s idea of livestreaming it highly controversial.

Republican Senator Thom Tillis characterized the proposal as “beyond disgusting,” with his fellow GOP lawmaker, Representative Austin Scott, writing on X that “live-streaming executions is what jihadists do.”

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy also likened public executions to those carried out by terrorist groups.

Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, similarly condemned the livestream plan as a “barbaric promotion of a culture of death.”

Born in the US in 1970 to Palestinian immigrant parents, Hasan trained as a doctor before becoming an Army psychiatrist.

Return fire from military police wounded Hasan before they could arrest him, leaving the shooter paralyzed from the waist down.

During his court-martial, Hasan acknowledged his responsibility for the attack, stating that he believed he was acting to protect fellow Muslims from US military actions in Afghanistan.

In August 2013, a military court found Hasan guilty of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder. A panel of 13 senior military officers unanimously sentenced him to death later that month.

The US Supreme Court declined to review his conviction in March 2025, and Trump approved the execution earlier this month.

As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fights to retain power, loyalists are crediting him with strengthening the country and defeating its enemies, while former supporters blame his leadership for October 7 and are seeking alternatives on both the left and the right.

With less than a month to go before Israel’s elections, Netanyahu faces an uphill battle to retain power.

But polls show it won’t be an easy task. A recent survey  conducted by Maariv, one of Israel’s leading newspapers, estimates that his party, Likud, will only win 20 seats out of 120 total in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, a drop of 12 compared with its performance in the 2022 elections.

The decline in Likud’s ratings is hardly surprising. Netanyahu and his government have been blamed for failing to prevent the October 7, 2023 attacks, in which more than 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 people were taken to Gaza as hostages.

He has also faced criticism for pursuing a series of controversial policies concerning the judiciary and the media; remaining in power amid graft probes that led to charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust; and contributing to Israel’s growing isolation on the international stage.

In Bibi we trust

Surprisingly, however, the Maariv poll shows that around 40 percent of respondents still want Netanyahu to remain Prime Minister of Israel.
Loyalists offer a long list of Netanyahu’s achievements. For them he is the man who subdued Israel’s enemies, confronted Iran’s nuclear ambitions and strengthened Israel’s position in the region.

Under his leadership, Israel deepened relations with the United States and expanded its diplomatic ties through the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations with the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Bahrain in 2020. Under him, Israel has also bloomed economically, championing a more open, market-oriented economy, privatization and competition, something that has helped to position the state as a global technology hub. 

Naor Shukri, a 56-year-old resident of Haifa, is among those loyalists; he vows to vote for Likud on October 27.

“Indeed, October 7 happened during the watch of Netanyahu, and he is also responsible for that failure. But he is not the only one. Many other people, including the Shin Bet [internal spy agency - ed.], the IDF and various politicians, are equally to blame and need to be investigated.”

“Plus, those events would have happened anyways, regardless of who was running the country. So pinning the blame on Netanyahu is not fair, to say the least,” he added.

“In the end of the day, he led a brilliant multi-front campaign against Hamas, Hezbollah of Lebanon, the Houthis of Yemen, the Iraqi militias and the regime of Iran. His achievements were recognized internationally and when you look at the map of the Middle East and compare it to what it was like three years ago, you realize that Israel has only emerged stronger. Our enemies are way weaker.”

Both men believe Netanyahu has not received sufficient credit for these and other achievements from the liberal media and the international community. In their view, this reflects an effort to discredit Israel’s actions, replace its right-wing government and hand power to more liberal political circles that they believe would be influenced by the West.

Their claims are not without context. Over the years, European countries have poured billions of dollars into Israel’s liberal NGOs and think tanks that promote equality, coexistence and a two-state solution with the Palestinians. Such funding has long been opposed by conservative circles, which argue that the money has also helped finance anti-government protests that have destabilized the country and ultimately created an opportunity for Israel’s enemies to attack on October 7. 

“We all know Europe and liberal Americans are trying to get rid of Netanyahu,” said Avraham.

“They don’t want to see a strong Israel. Inside their own countries, European governments surrendered to their Muslim radicals and they want Israel to do the same. That’s why Netanyahu needs to be the Prime Minister. Only he will make sure it won’t happen.”

The problem, however, is that Netanyahu’s coalition bloc, according to the polls, does not have enough seats to reach the crucial threshold of 61. To overcome this hurdle, Netanyahu will either need to perform better than expected on election day or persuade members of the opposing, so-called change bloc, that joining forces with him would be the better option.

He has pulled off this political maneuver before. In 2020, he convinced Benny Gantz, then leader of the Blue and White party, to form a unity government, bringing an end to a year-long political stalemate.

In 2023, shortly after the Hamas-led attacks, he did it again, establishing an emergency government with Gantz.

This time, Israeli analysts say, such an arrangement is unlikely, largely because politicians from the opposing camp no longer trust Netanyahu or his promises.

Indeed, many Israeli politicians have openly vowed not to join his government under any circumstances. The list is lengthy and includes former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, as well as other contenders for the top job, such as Gadi Eisenkott and Avigdor Liberman.

“Netanyahu is a magician. He has been buried politically so many times before and yet he is still around, while all his rivals are no longer relevant,” said Shukri.

“Bibi cannot be underestimated. I agree it won’t be easy for him to form a government but he knows how to maneuver the system and I am sure in the end of the day he will find a solution, form a government and remain in power,” echoed Avraham.

War as a political tool?

Critics, however, argue that Netanyahu might not even need to rack his brains over coalition negotiations. They fear he could launch another round of hostilities with Iran, pushing the prospect of elections into the distant future.

Their concerns have not emerged out of thin air. Only recently, Israeli Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir warned that a war with Iran could postpone the vote.

Netanyahu himself sent an alarming message in late September, claiming there were “indications” that Israel’s enemies might attack the country ahead of the elections and vowing to retaliate if such a scenario materialized.

“I take the warnings of our Prime Minister very seriously,” argued Avraham. “I doubt he would go into a war just for the sake of postponing the elections. Throughout the years he has been known as a careful politician, who doesn’t like risking our soldiers’ lives and who only does that out of necessity. Here it would be the same. Netanyahu will open a front only if there is a concrete threat, not anything else.”

Shukri appears to agree. “Don’t believe what the liberal media is telling you about Bibi. They will always demonize him and depict him as a politician who clings to power no matter what. The truth is that he genuinely wants the best for the country, and I hope that on October 27, the people will give him that opportunity [to remain in power - ed.].”

He says he voted for Netanyahu and Likud from the time he first became eligible to do so in 2003. Today, however, he intends to support Yair Golan and the Democrats, a left-wing, liberal-Zionist party that advocates a strong security policy alongside diplomatic solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Plotnik says his opinion changed in 2014, during Operation Protective Edge, a 51-day military campaign against Hamas in Gaza that killed more than 2,000 Palestinians, many of whom were civilians. 

“Operation Protective Edge was a major turning point. I watched Israeli leaders promise to destroy Hamas, demolish tunnels and restore deterrence, only to see a familiar cycle emerging: military action, a period of calm and then another round of fighting.”

“Everything was one big deception,” he recalled, arguing that right-wing governments had sold voters “fantasies that don’t correspond with reality.”

Then came October 7, 2023. For Plotnik, the massacre was not an isolated catastrophe but the collapse of a security concept that had been failing for years.

Israel’s leadership, he argues, had effectively built a wall that allowed politicians and the public to ignore Gaza while assuming that a state of neither war nor peace could continue indefinitely.

”That concept collapsed,” Plotnik said. “The policy of ignoring and stagnation crumbled down.”

Plotnik believes Israel’s only realistic path towards long-term security is an agreement with its enemies. He plans to support Golan because he believes diplomacy is necessary if Israelis want their children and grandchildren to have a chance to grow up in peace.

”There is no love between the countries, but there is quiet based on state interests,” he said.

”Not everything will work and the agreement will collapse? We can always go back to fighting,” he added.

From Netanyahu to Ben Gvir

Not every former Netanyahu voter, however, has reached the same destination.

Guy Even Tzur says he voted consistently for Netanyahu from 2015 until now. He still considers himself firmly on the right, but he, too, has decided it is time for a change. His choice is almost the polar opposite of Plotnik’s: Itamar Ben Gvir.

Ben Gvir, leader of the hawkish Jewish Power party, has served as national security minister in the current government of Netanyahu. He opposes Palestinian statehood, advocates a hard line against Palestinian militancy and has a 2007 conviction for incitement to racism and support for a terrorist organization.

However, this does not bother Even Tzur because he believes voters “should be voting ideologically and for people who actually deliver.”

Ben Gvir, he believes, has done just that. Even Tzur credits him with pushing tougher prison conditions for security prisoners, expanding civilian access to firearms and taking a harder line on crime and security.

“This is why he deserves my vote. Netanyahu, on the contrary, showed that he makes mistakes and can miss massively,” he argued.

Even Tzur says October 7 was a major realization point. But unlike Plotnik, he does not believe the war proved Netanyahu’s entire security doctrine fraudulent. He claims Netanyahu conducted the subsequent campaign effectively and achieved major successes.

The only question that begs to be answered is: by who. Even Tzur believes Netanyahu has not produced a successor from within the Likud, and this is exactly why he wants to create an alternative by strengthening the ideological right. He doesn’t reject the idea of Netanyahu leading the next government but he also wants to give power to more hawkish voices within the camp to make sure tougher policies are implemented. 

Plotnik, on the contrary, rejects the notion, claiming that another term of Netanyahu would perpetuate the strategic approach that, in his view, contributed to October 7.

The two men are moving in opposite political directions. Yet both have reached a similar conclusion: Netanyahu’s long-standing dominance no longer makes him the automatic choice. And now, more and more former Likud supporters can imagine a future without him. 

US President Donald Trump could have Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky arrested on corruption charges, former British MP George Galloway has predicted.

Tensions between the two men escalated after Zelensky challenged Trump’s deal with Moscow to ease restrictions on Russian diesel exports. Washington has repeatedly demanded that Kiev stop striking Russian oil refineries, warning that continued attacks could jeopardize US intelligence sharing and Starlink support. Kiev has pressed ahead with the strikes, while Zelensky has accused Trump of “betrayal” and “weakness.”

Speaking to RT on Thursday, Galloway, who also hosts The Mother of All Talk Shows, suggested that Zelensky’s defiance of Trump could cost him his position.

“I’m going to predict to you that Trump will organize the anti-corruption units that he arguably controls in Kiev to march into Zelensky’s office at some point soon and place him under arrest for grand larceny, for corruption on a scale that we have never seen in politics ever before,” he said.

“This is a regime in the process of collapse,” Galloway added.

He cautioned, however, that a change of leadership would not necessarily end the Ukraine conflict, arguing that Kiev would also have to abandon its NATO ambitions and adopt a policy of neutrality.

Galloway also argued that Ukraine had no viable replacement for Starlink and that losing access to the satellite service could severely hamper its military operations.

“He certainly never goes away from Britain empty-handed,” Galloway said, responding to Burnham’s assurance that Zelensky would not leave the country without further support.

He accused Britain’s political establishment of harboring a centuries-old hostility toward Russia, saying, “We are ruled by people who are still fighting the Crimean War.”

Galloway suggested that Britain could ultimately become Zelensky’s refuge if he loses power, describing the country as his “safest of havens.”

In September 2025, Galloway and his wife were detained and questioned by counterterrorism police at London’s Gatwick Airport after returning from Russia. Both were released without charge. Last month, Galloway said the Bank of Scotland had closed accounts he held for 39 years without explanation. The bank denied closing the accounts on political grounds.

Watch the full interview below.

Something fundamental has changed in Europe over the past months. Governments across the continent have begun expanding the powers of intelligence agencies at a pace that would have been difficult to imagine only a few years ago.

Germany is preparing to give its foreign intelligence service a far more operational role. The Netherlands is expanding the ability of its intelligence agencies to act proactively against hostile actors. Austria is broadening its definition of espionage. Sweden is rebuilding its foreign intelligence architecture.

Taken together, these amount to a European securitization drive: more activities are being redefined as security problems, more institutions are being brought inside the security apparatus, and intelligence services are being transformed from organizations that primarily collect information into agencies which are increasingly expected to act.

Western Europe’s security establishment has been shaken by two developments: the continuing perception of a more assertive and dangerous international environment, and growing political uncertainty surrounding America’s role in European security under President Donald Trump.

The psychological shock came in March 2025, when the Trump administration temporarily halted US military and battlefield intelligence sharing with Vladimir Zelensky’s Ukraine.

For decades, European security planning had rested on an assumption that American intelligence capabilities would be available when the strategic stakes became serious. Suddenly, they could not be certain to rely on that anymore.

Later in 2025, the Netherlands reportedly stopped sharing certain information with US counterparts amid concerns over political interference and “human rights” considerations. Again, the immediate dispute was just one glimpse of the realization dawning on Washington’s European partners: intelligence cooperation is ultimately political, and political relationships can change.

The Europeans now had to confront a question they had largely been avoiding. What happens when an ally possessing the world’s most powerful intelligence apparatus can no longer be assumed to have the same political priorities?

The obvious answer is to build more European capacity. This does not mean that Europe is preparing to replace the US, or that trans-Atlantic intelligence cooperation is disappearing. But the European governments want to make sure their spies can still operate, even when Washington’s political priorities are different from theirs.

Germany: From spying to sabotage

Friedrich Merz’s Germany is perhaps the best example of how far the transformation could go. Berlin is pursuing the largest overhaul of the country’s intelligence system since World War II.

Under reforms expected to take effect in January, the Federal Intelligence Service, or BND, would receive substantially greater latitude to conduct offensive activities. In a state of tension or military defense, the service could conduct acts of sabotage abroad.

That’s a major conceptual departure for an organization traditionally associated primarily with foreign intelligence collection.

An intelligence agency that can collect more information is more powerful. An agency that can manipulate data, delete data, conduct offensive cyber operations or sabotage targets abroad becomes an instrument capable of exercising power, rather than simply informing those who exercise it.

In continental Europe, where historical experience has made the concentration of coercive authority particularly sensitive, that is a very big difference.

Austria is expanding what counts as espionage

The Austrian government is approaching the matter from a different angle. It has announced plans to strengthen its legal framework against espionage. Under the existing system, foreign intelligence activity could escape criminal liability when it was directed against entities other than Austria itself.

Under the proposed changes, espionage directed against international organizations headquartered in Austria could become a criminal offense. The list includes institutions such as the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations Office at Vienna, the OSCE and various EU bodies.

The definition of harm is also being revised to include activities that have the potential to damage Austria’s security and international standing or economic interests, rather than only when actual damage can be demonstrated. The law would also target the recruitment of individuals by foreign intelligence services, including so-called low-level agents.

This is another important feature of Europe’s new security politics: the security perimeter is expanding.

In August 2026, the Dutch government proposed changes to national security legislation that would broaden the powers of the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD), and the Defense Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD).

The proposed rules would allow the services to undertake certain proactive operations without obtaining prior permission and would facilitate greater intelligence sharing with the armed forces, other government bodies and private companies.

The government has explicitly identified China, Iran and Russia among the actors it regards as “obvious adversaries.”

It also increases private sector integration with the national security system. Technology companies, telecommunications firms and operators of critical infrastructure increasingly possess information that governments need, so the distinction between the intelligence community and the private economy is getting erased.

Sweden is rebuilding for the post-neutrality era

Sweden is undergoing its own institutional transformation.

On January 1, 2027, a new Swedish Foreign Intelligence Service, UND, is scheduled to begin operations, separating civilian foreign intelligence from military intelligence. The Swedish government argues that the division will clarify responsibilities and improve the country’s ability to assess a broader range of security threats.

Sweden’s accession to NATO fundamentally altered the country’s strategic environment, and the transformation of its intelligence architecture is a logical consequence.

Membership in NATO requires more than just military interoperability – a state needs to understand threats, produce intelligence, protect sensitive information and contribute intelligence to allies. Sweden is doing something which has become increasingly common across Europe: rebuilding national security institutions for a world in which strategic uncertainty is the baseline rather than the exception.

Brussels cannot build a European CIA – but it is building something

The irony is that the EU as a bloc remains remarkably weak when it comes to intelligence. National security is still firmly controlled by member states. Brussels can coordinate and analyze, but it does not command a conventional European intelligence service.

For decades, this was reinforced by national distrust. The EU’s most capable intelligence services preferred small circles of trusted partners. The Club de Berne, the continent’s best-known intelligence cooperation forum, has no permanent headquarters or secretariat and traditionally meets only periodically.

Politically, that remains unrealistic. Few member states are prepared to surrender control over their most sensitive intelligence capabilities to Brussels. But that does not mean European intelligence cooperation is standing still.

Intelligence liaison officers are increasingly present in EU member states’ permanent representations in Brussels. The European External Action Service is strengthening its intelligence-analysis capacity. The EU Intelligence and Situation Centre, INTCEN, is being developed as an increasingly important channel for classified information.

INTCEN does not conduct espionage itself. It relies on intelligence supplied voluntarily by national services and turns it into strategic assessments for European decision-makers.

That model may ultimately prove more realistic than a European CIA. Rather than one giant EU intelligence service, Europe is likely to develop smaller circles of national agencies sharing sensitive information, surrounded by stronger EU-level coordination and analytical institutions.

The real question is who controls the new power

There is a danger hidden inside this whole big transformation. Western European intelligence systems are historically diverse. They developed under different constitutional traditions, experiences of war, and conceptions of the relationship between intelligence and executive authority.

Intelligence services have traditionally been expected to support executive power, not become executive power themselves.

Giving intelligence agencies the ability to conduct offensive cyber operations, manipulate information, disrupt hostile networks or conduct sabotage may be justified under carefully defined circumstances. But every new capability raises the same questions: Who authorizes it? Who supervises it? Who can challenge it? What happens when a government wants to revise the perception of external threats?

Western Europe has legitimate reasons to strengthen its capacity to detect and disrupt threats. The strategic environment is more competitive. Cyber operations have become routine instruments of statecraft. Intelligence warfare increasingly targets companies, infrastructure, political institutions and individuals rather than simply military installations.

But the transformation should be watched closely. Europe’s intelligence revolution is happening through dozens of apparently technical decisions: a longer data-retention period here, a broader definition of espionage there, new cyber authorities somewhere else, closer cooperation with private companies, a new intelligence office in Brussels.

There is no single European ‘Intelligence Act,’ but there does not need to be one. The security state can expand incrementally – which may be exactly what is happening now.

The strategic shock created by the Ukraine war and uncertainty over America’s future role has accelerated a process that was already underway. European governments are concluding that they need more independent intelligence capacity, more operational flexibility and tighter cooperation among themselves.

The likely result will not be a European CIA. It will be something more distinctly European: powerful national intelligence services operating in increasingly dense networks, supported by a stronger Brussels-based analytical and coordinating layer.

The continent is giving its spies teeth. The next question is whether it will also build strong enough institutions to decide when – and against whom – they may bite.

Yemen’s Houthis have conducted a missile strike on the presidential palace in the southern city of Aden, where the internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government is located.

The group claimed the strike killed several Saudi officials and mercenaries, while the government acknowledged only two fatalities among security guards. Later in the day, the figure was revised to five dead and at least 16 wounded.

The Al-Maashiq presidential palace was hit by at least five missiles on Thursday, with footage circulating online showing black smoke and a large plume of dust emitting from the compound. Yemeni Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani said the country’s prime minister and cabinet members were at the compound during the strike yet escaped the attack unharmed.

The militant group, known officially as the Ansar Allah movement, said that the compound served as military operations headquarters run by Saudi officers and was being used as a weapons depot. There were multiple casualties at the site, the Houthis claimed.

“The strike on the Saudi enemy’s military operations headquarters in Aden falls within the framework of the previously announced policy: targeting Saudi military concentrations wherever they may be and considering any military presence of the Saudi enemy a legitimate target for our forces, wherever it is located,” the group’s military spokesman, Yahya Saree, has said.

Throughout September, Ansar Allah inflicted a decisive defeat on pro-Saudi forces on Yemen’s western coast, reaching the strategic Bab-el Mandeb Strait. The most intense fighting is currently around the country’s third-largest city of Taiz, which is controlled by the Aden-based government. Houthi forces have cut off the city and report daily advances, tightening the encirclement.

The renewed fighting has been marked by long-range attacks by both sides. The Houthis have repeatedly attacked Saudi oil installations and international airports, warning air carriers against operating in the kingdom altogether. Riyadh has carried out air strikes against the Houthis, and both sides have repeatedly accused each another of hitting civilian targets.

The Kremlin has accused European countries of deliberately excluding the strongest competitors from international sporting events as part of a systematic attempt to manipulate results.

The majority of EU members have at some point refused entry to Russian athletes, despite them being cleared by their governing body to compete. Croatia tried to prevent nine Russian gymnasts from attending this summer’s European Gymnastics Championships, the country’s junior and under-23 canoe slalom teams missed the World Championships in Poland, and Russian archers were unable to compete in a World Cup event in Spain because of visa problems.

Most recently, the Netherlands refused entry to Angelina Melnikova, Viktoria Listunova and Anna Kalmykova for the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam from October 17-25. The tournament forms part of the qualifications for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“There are clear attempts by certain countries to influence the outcome of competitions by deliberately excluding the strongest,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

According to the Russian Gymnastics Federation (RGF), the visa refusal notices stated that “one or more Schengen member states” considered the three gymnasts “a threat to their international relations.”

Melnikova is the reigning world all-around champion and won European all-around gold this year. Listunova won Olympic team gold alongside her in Tokyo, while Kalmykova claimed European all-around silver this summer.

The RGF called the exclusions “direct discrimination” and a violation of equal conditions for Olympic qualification. Sports Minister and Russian Olympic Committee president Mikhail Degtyarev announced that Russia would seek to strip Rotterdam of its Olympic qualifying status.

World Gymnastics expressed regret over the disruption to the Russian delegation’s preparations. It said visa decisions rested exclusively with the Dutch authorities and that discussions with officials and organizers were continuing.

The refusals come despite World Gymnastics restoring Russian participation under national flags and anthems in May. The IOC provisionally reinstated the Russian Olympic Committee in July, following widespread restrictions imposed after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022.

Several European governments have opposed the return. Euractiv reported last month that Brussels was considering visa restrictions and cuts to funding for sporting organizations that readmit Russian and Belarusian athletes under national symbols.

Russia has also challenged continuing restrictions through the Court of Arbitration for Sport, including World Athletics’ refusal to readmit its competitors before a peace agreement in Ukraine.

An earlier legal challenge helped clear the way for Russians to compete at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, where they won eight gold medals. Russian junior figure skaters also swept all four disciplines at an international Grand Prix event in China in August after a four-year absence.

Government employees sharing confidential information with journalists should face the death penalty, US President Donald Trump has said.

Addressing supporters during a midterm rally in Bullhead City, Arizona on Wednesday, Trump cited an occasion when the Pentagon allegedly had to put off an air raid against Iran after the bombers’ departure and arrival times were leaked to the press, including the New York Times and CNN.

It was not immediately clear which military operation Trump was referring to, although several media outlets conjectured that he was speaking about last year’s bombing campaign targeting Iran’s underground nuclear facilities.

“Somebody leaked – some sleazebag,” Trump said, adding that “they ought to go to jail and be shot.”

He argued that “in the old days we used to shoot leakers… [especially] when they leak what time you’re going to attack a country.”

“The leakers are the scum of the earth,” Trump concluded.

Since the start of the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran in late February, the Republican leader has repeatedly lashed out at government officials leaking information to the press as well as media outlets publishing such materials.

In August, the US president similarly accused leakers of making “treasonous statements,” saying that they were “being hunted down” and that “long term jail sentences will be sought!”

The tirade was prompted by a Washington Post report alleging that Trump was frustrated with US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth for providing misleading information about supposed ammunition shortages, especially with respect to long-range missiles and air defense interceptors.

Trump dismissed the allegations as “completely FALSE,” insisting that the “US has massive amounts of ‘munitions’,” with yet more being produced and supplied, as needed.

The New York Times subsequently reported that the Pentagon had subjected dozens of civilian employees and military officers to polygraph tests in a bid to identify the source of the leak regarding the supposed ammunition shortages.

In April, Trump demanded that the journalist who had reported the details of a rescue mission for the two crew members of the US F-15E Strike Eagle, which was shot down over Iran, divulge their sources or face jail. The US president suggested that the leak had put one of the service members’ lives in danger.

From October 13 to 23, 2026, Italy is hosting NATO’s annual nuclear deterrence exercise Steadfast Noon. The exercise will take place at air bases in Aviano and Ghedi in northern Italy. Flight operations and training involving mock nuclear weapons will take place in designated airspace over the Tyrrhenian Sea and other areas under NATO jurisdiction in Southern and Western Europe. The purpose of these exercises is to prepare NATO aircraft for the potential deployment of US nuclear weapons stationed at European airbases. 

This year’s exercise boasts a record number of participants – 17 NATO countries, compared to 14 in 2025 and 13 in 2024. While the complete list of participating nations hasn’t been disclosed, it is confirmed that the US, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, and Türkiye will take part. Romania and Poland will likely provide fighter support and ensure integration along NATO’s eastern flank. New NATO members – Sweden and Finland – are fully engaged in the training missions. Finland may host US nuclear weapons in the future and has already started acquiring F-35 carrier aircraft.

Notably, France does not participate in NATO’s nuclear planning group and is not involved in these exercises, likely due to its own air-delivered nuclear capabilities.

The exercise involves around 70 military aircraft and over 2,000 service personnel. The main focus is on dual-capable aircraft, which can carry both conventional and nuclear payloads. In Europe, this currently includes F-35A Lightning II multi-role fighters, German Tornado IDS strike aircraft, and F-16 multi-role fighters. Under the US Nuclear Sharing program, these European planes are equipped to carry US nuclear bombs. Additionally, Swedish JAS 39 Gripen jets will also be involved in the exercise, although these planes are not equipped to carry American nuclear bombs.

Strategic support for the tactical air units is provided by American B-52H bombers. Air-to-air refueling during the exercises over the Tyrrhenian and Mediterranean seas will be carried out by KC-135 Stratotanker and KC-767A aircraft. Coordination of aircraft operations will be managed by NATO’s E-3A Sentry AWACS aircraft. Logistic support will be provided by Airbus A400M military transport planes.

What types of nuclear munitions could be involved in the 2026 exercise? It is known that B61-series US thermonuclear tactical bombs are stored in Europe, including at Aviano Air Base. 

B61-3 and B61-4 bombs belong to the penultimate generation of nuclear bombs. These are free-fall (gravity) nuclear bombs. Their yield can be adjusted – from a minimum of 0.3 kilotons to a maximum of 45–50 kilotons in TNT equivalent – depending on the mission requirements set before takeoff.

The B61-12 represents the latest modification in the US arsenal. A particular feature of this model is the tail kit produced by Boeing, which transforms a conventional bomb into a guided precision weapon. The high level of precision allows for reduced explosive yield while maintaining destructive power against heavily fortified command centers and other critical targets. Additionally, lowering the yield significantly mitigates collateral radioactive contamination of the surrounding area. The B61-12 is gradually replacing older munitions in the American nuclear stockpile.

As previously mentioned, Exercise Steadfast Noon takes place regularly. However, given the current geopolitical landscape, any routine military activity takes on added significance and is viewed by observers through the lens of a potential East-West confrontation. On the one hand, NATO emphasizes the defensive nature of these exercises, and there is a relatively small number of participating aircraft – for example, only three German Tornado aircraft. On the other hand, the number of participating nations is steadily increasing, and many NATO countries now possess nuclear-capable aircraft, particularly F-35 fighters. While today, Finland may participate in these maneuvers more as a student and observer, Finnish F-35s could soon be ready to transport nuclear bombs. 

There’s a growing sense that this ‘train’ is headed in the wrong direction. And it’s unlikely that the growing number of ‘Chekhov’s guns’ will contribute to fostering lasting peace in Europe. Perhaps it would be wiser for Europe to focus on peaceful initiatives rather than militarization and the proliferation of potential nuclear platforms.

South Africa’s Constitutional Court has cleared 181 African National Congress (ANC) candidates to contest next month’s local elections, overturning their exclusion over the party’s failure to complete a final online nomination step.

The court upheld the ANC’s appeal against a September 16 Electoral Court ruling that had backed the Electoral Commission of SA’s decision to exclude the candidates in six municipalities. The Electoral Commission of SA, or IEC, rejected the nominations after the ANC failed to complete the final submission step on the commission’s online system before the 5pm deadline on August 28, despite having uploaded the candidates’ details and paid the required deposits.

The matter was heard on Monday by a bench led by Deputy Chief Justice Dunstan Mlambo, which included Justices Rammaka Mathopo, Nonkosi Mhlantla, Nambitha Dambuza-Mayosi, Leona Theron, Andre le Grange and Kate Savage, and Acting Justice Lister Nuku. During the argument, advocate Daniel Berger SC, for the ANC, said the “submit as final” button was a feature of the IEC’s software and not a requirement of the law. “It is not law, and it cannot be brought in through the back door as being incorporated somehow into the regulations,” Berger said.

Mathopo noted from the bench on Monday that his concern was not only the ANC’s case. ”My worry, it’s not this case itself, it’s the far-reaching implications that a judgment of this court would have, either for the ANC or for the IEC,” he said. ”If it’s for the IEC, for example, the message that will be conveyed would be absent clicking of a button, final submit, you are excluded.”

Advocate Terry Motau SC, for the IEC, told the court that the commission had checked its system and found no glitches, and that the ANC had left its nominations too late. ”It’s not only because a party decides not to contest, a party might have neglected its duties to use a system that was open since June 21 2016 and left it to the last moment and it missed the deadline,” Motau said.

Justice Kate Savage put it to Berger during the hearing that it was “quite extraordinary” the ANC had finalised its lists across the country but not in these six municipalities, and that there was no explanation other than gross negligence.

The DA, represented by advocate Michael Bishop SC, opposed the ANC’s appeal and backed the IEC.

First published by IOL

Eight US states have sued OpenAI, accusing its ChatGPT chatbot of encouraging self-harm and violence, including among children, and misleading the public about its safety.

The states allege that ChatGPT is designed to be excessively agreeable and engaging, gaining users’ trust while reinforcing delusions, encouraging dangerous behavior, and even helping plan mass shootings.

“OpenAI claims ChatGPT is safe while it’s giving dangerous medical advice, encouraging people to hurt others, and coaching people to commit suicide – all while pretending to be their fake friend,” Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird said.

Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, West Virginia, Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho, and Montana filed separate lawsuits in state courts on Wednesday. The complaints accuse the company of violating consumer protection laws and creating a public nuisance.

The states seek financial penalties, damages, and changes to ChatGPT. They also want OpenAI barred from developing self-improving AI models unless it can demonstrate that those systems are aligned with human values.

OpenAI spokesman Drew Pusateri defended the company’s age-specific protections, parental controls, and break reminders, saying that “while no system can be perfect, we’ll continue to work with experts to inform our work and build additional safeguards.”

The subpoenas reportedly exceed 50 pages each and cover security incidents, safeguards, marketing materials, and privacy policies. The regulator also plans to compel senior AI executives to testify. Neither the companies nor the FTC immediately responded to Reuters’ requests for comment.

OpenAI already faces numerous lawsuits alleging that ChatGPT contributed to suicides, delusions, and violence. Families affected by February’s Tumbler Ridge school shooting in Canada accuse the company of failing to alert police about the shooter’s violent conversations. OpenAI has acknowledged that it considered alerting police but ultimately did not do so before the attack.

Scrutiny has also intensified over AI agents acting outside their intended instructions. Anthropic recently disclosed that its models submitted a false homicide tip to police and incomplete visa applications, while OpenAI investigated its agents accessing outside systems without authorization during testing.

The Ministry of Education building has been set ablaze in Tirana. The Albanian capital is reeling from a third consecutive day of student-led mass protests.

The protests which began in the country this week were reportedly sparked by the ongoing unrest in France and were initially aimed at rising education costs, the poor condition of educational facilities, and widespread corruption.

The unrest promptly grew political and violent, and the protesters are now demanding the departure of socialist Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama as well as the leader of the country’s democratic opposition, Sali Berisha. The two have dominated Albania’s political landscape for about four decades, and both have repeatedly faced allegations of corruption.

The unrest comes on top of months of anti-government protests in Albania, which have mainly revolved around a major luxury tourism development project linked to US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. The movement, which has become known as the ‘Flamingo Revolution,’ has been condemned by the prime minister as part of a “hybrid war” waged by the “enemies of Israel and Albania.”

On Wednesday, a large crowd of protesters breached the premises of the Education Ministry, setting the building on fire. Footage from the scene shows the fence of the compound damaged, with a large group of protesters watching black smoke billowing out of the windows.

Violent protests continue in Tirana, while the Ministry of Education building has caught fire.Citizens are demanding the resignation of PM Rama & the removal of opposition leader Berisha-two strongmen who have dominated Albania for nearly 40 years with abuse & massive corruption https://t.co/OXEJbCVwF0 pic.twitter.com/wfE4N6SM8d

— Tirana Report (@Tirana_Report) October 14, 2026

The protesters have been seen destroying surveillance cameras across Tirana. They justified their actions by claiming the companies operating them have been using “Israeli spyware.”

📌 Student protesters in Albania have destroyed surveillance cameras, accusing companies of allegedly using Israeli spyware

The protesters are demanding better conditions for young people and opposing what they describe as the growing influence of the “Kushner clan” in the… pic.twitter.com/IcdNY5EJ1K

— Context 360 (@NewsContext360) October 15, 2026

Numerous videos circulating online show riot police brawling with protesters in the streets, unleashing batons, tear gas, and water cannons in an attempt to quell the unrest. A large column of military trucks has been reported entering the capital, potentially indicating the government opted to deploy soldiers onto the streets.

🚨🇦🇱 BREAKING: COLUMNS OF MILITARY TRUCKS ENTER TIRANA, ALBANIA’S CAPITAL Columns of military trucks have reportedly entered Tirana as tensions continue amid ongoing student protests and wider anti-government demonstrations. https://t.co/JMIgO9GXnQ

— Anonymous TV 🇺🇦 (@YourAnonTV) October 15, 2026

The violence follows widespread rioting across the capital on Wednesday, when groups of protesters attacked government buildings, banks, and businesses. At least 89 people, including 61 police, were injured throughout the day, according to the Albanian Health Ministry.

The push for deeper economic engagement between India and Russia is at the heart of the second Russia-India TIME Business Forum that opened in Kazan on Thursday.

The results of the effort, kickstarted when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited New Delhi in December, are already visible in Kazan, capital of the Republic of Tatarstan. India’s trade with the Russian region is surging, and exceeded $1.09 billion in the first six months of the year – a more than ninefold rise from the same period a year ago. The figure also surpasses the roughly $400 million recorded for all of 2025, according to regional authorities.

Both countries are seeking to expand joint manufacturing and investment projects by capitalizing on this momentum.

India’s ambassador to Russia, Vinay Kumar, said relations with the Russian region have been on a positive trajectory since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Kazan for the BRICS summit in 2024. He noted the growing trade, the higher number of Indian students and businesses in the region, and the opening of an Indian consulate in Kazan.

“Tatarstan offers opportunities in trade and investment,” Kumar said, adding “mutuality of interest between India and Tatarstan to take the relationship forward is giving an impetus not only to regional ties but also India-Russia relations.”

Following negotiations at the INNOPROM.India exhibition in New Delhi last month, Tatarstan’s investment agency signed cooperation agreements with Indian companies working in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals.

The discussions mark a shift “from general declarations to substantive negotiations” on production and joint ventures, Tatarstan Investment Development Agency chief Taliya Minullina said ahead of the forum.

Indian companies could also supply electronic components to Tatarstan’s manufacturers, while Indian cloud provider Bharat AI Cloud has announced plans to open an office in Kazan.

“Our relationship goes deep into history, where our roots intersect,” Lerner said. “It’s not surprising. Trade routes passed through Tatarstan.”

The event has a strong cultural component this year. Alongside an Indian film festival and a musical project titled ‘Purana Symphony’, Tatarstan’s renowned craftsmen are presenting their wares.

“What is very important is that some of them saw similarities with their culture,” Lerner said.

The first TIME forum last year resulted in 19 cooperation agreements involving businesses, educational institutions, and regional authorities.

Workforce cooperation also expanded. Tatarstan issued 978 work permits to Indian nationals during the first eight months of 2026, compared with 665 throughout last year. Earlier this month, Putin signed off on an agreement with India on temporary employment, as Russian companies seek more workers in manufacturing and other industries.

The US has proposed unfreezing billions of euros in Russian assets held in the EU to give impetus to Ukraine peace talks, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing sources. Moscow has long described the freezing of its assets as “theft” while warning of significant retaliation if the funds are seized.

The proposal was raised last week during negotiations in Miami involving President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, and officials from Ukraine, France, Germany, Britain, the EU, and NATO, four people familiar with the matter told the paper.

Washington reportedly floated several mechanisms for releasing the frozen funds as part of a comprehensive peace deal, including transferring some of them into a special-purpose vehicle overseen by the US. However, the exact arrangements have not been finalized, with numerous ideas about how the funds could be used being discussed, the FT said.

Kiev’s European backers, however, rejected the American initiative, refusing to surrender control over the assets, with the move requiring the unanimous approval of all 27 EU members, according to the newspaper. The proposal also reportedly “startled” European delegations and Kiev, with some wondering about Washington’s intentions.

Publicly, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz ruled out any compromises on Russian assets, insisting that “they should remain frozen in Europe. This is our business and we are deciding over it.” Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski was even more blunt, saying that any returning of the funds to Russia could only occur “over our dead bodies.”

While EU countries managed to agree on using proceeds from the funds to support Ukraine, the proposal to confiscate them outright has met fierce resistance amid concerns that the move would undermine the bloc’s business reputation and trigger legal retaliation from Moscow.

Commenting on the FT article, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had no information about the purported American initiative. However, he stressed that Russia would make every effort to recover the “stolen assets,” including legal action, court proceedings, and the prosecution of those responsible.

The FT report comes after Trump last week announced an agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin to allow additional Russian diesel exports to alleviate the pressure on American and global markets.

In addition, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing sources, that Washington is also considering relaxing sanctions on some vessels belonging to what Western media call a Russian “shadow fleet” used to transport Russian oil.

The report also comes amid an escalating Trump-Zelensky feud, with the US president blaming Kiev’s strikes on Russian oil refineries for soaring fuel prices and calling for Ukraine to get a “new president.” Zelensky, in turn, said he felt betrayed by Trump over the Russian diesel deal and restrictions on Ukraine’s access to Starlink.

Russia has called for the views of all major political forces in Libya to be taken into account in efforts to resolve the country’s prolonged political crisis, warning that excluding influential institutions could undermine long-term stability.

Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting on Wednesday, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia expressed Moscow’s support for the UN-backed roadmap aimed at ending Libya’s political deadlock, including plans to hold nationwide elections within two years. However, he noted that a recent agreement reached through UN-mediated talks has received mixed reactions from political groups that were not involved in the negotiations.

“We believe that it would be, at the very least, counterproductive to sideline the country’s influential institutions in view of the country’s long-term political stability,” Nebenzia said. “We understand that sometimes it can be quite challenging to work with Libyan institutions. However, that is no reason to ignore their opinion.”

“As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, Russia will be prepared to support whatever is endorsed by Libya’s leading political forces,” Nebenzia pointed out.

Libya has been split between rival administrations since the NATO-backed uprising that overthrew Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 and plunged the country into turmoil. The western part is controlled by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah’s administration, while a rival government in the east is backed by the military commander Khalifa Haftar.

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) introduced a new political roadmap in August 2025, focusing on establishing an electoral framework. On August 30, representatives of the opposing sides agreed to a UN-backed roadmap calling for presidential and parliamentary elections within two years under a unified executive authority.

Vladimir Zelensky is directly challenging US President Donald Trump through his outright refusal to acknowledge or accept a deal aimed at easing the global diesel shortage, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.

Trump reached the agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday after days of repeated US requests to halt strikes on Russian oil refineries being ignored by Zelensky. Washington subsequently eased sanctions on Russian diesel exports until April 2027, while Moscow pledged substantial fuel deliveries to help alleviate global shortages.

Speaking to reporters following a regional summit in Baku, Azerbaijan on Thursday, Lavrov said Moscow had backed the agreement proposed by Trump, while Zelensky continued to seek US weapons to carry out strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, including oil refineries.

“The deal was proposed, and we supported it,” Lavrov said, accusing Zelensky of instead demanding more missiles for US-made Patriot systems to continue striking Russian energy facilities, including oil refineries.

“This is a direct and blatant challenge to President Trump,” Lavrov said.

Zelensky criticized the agreement as a “weak decision,” lamenting that it would provide Russia with additional revenue. He also accused Trump of “betrayal,” blamed the global energy shortage on the US war on Iran, and condemned the withdrawal of American intelligence support as “dangerous.” 

Trump hit back, accusing the Ukrainian leader of creating problems for the global economy and suggesting that Ukraine needed a new president.

However, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak said on Wednesday that Ukrainian drones had targeted two oil refineries: in Ryazan and Saratov Regions.

Overnight, a UAV attack sparked a fire at an oil refinery in Ryazan Region, according to local authorities.

Moscow has denounced the attacks as acts of terrorism and vowed to intensify strikes on Ukrainian military-related facilities, including drone and missile warehouses, while maintaining that it never targets civilians.

The Kremlin said the renewed attacks ran counter to Washington’s efforts to broker peace. Moscow has repeatedly maintained that it seeks a lasting settlement of the Ukraine conflict rather than a temporary truce that would allow Kiev to regroup and rearm.

Weapons supplied to Ukraine from US military stocks have been found in the possession of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a senior Russian diplomat has said, citing markings linking them to deliveries to Kiev.

Yulia Zhdanova, head of Russia’s delegation to the Vienna Negotiations on Military Security and Arms Control, made the statement on Wednesday at a meeting of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Forum for Security Co-operation.

Sudanese troops recovered MK19 automatic grenade launchers, M72 anti-tank weapons, and Swedish-made AT4 launchers during an operation near Bara, she said, according to TASS. “A preliminary examination of the markings revealed that these weapons were donated to the Ukrainian Armed Forces in December 2024 from US military stock,” Zhdanova said.

Sudan’s army and the RSF have been at war since April 2023, forcing millions from their homes and exposing civilians to bombardment, hunger, and widespread abuses. In June last year, Sudanese Foreign Ministry official Muhammad Al-Sirr told RT that Ukraine was supplying drones to the paramilitary forces at very low prices and helping its fighters use the technology to strike Sudanese infrastructure.

Moscow has repeatedly stated that Western weapons supplied to Kiev are reaching armed groups in Africa through the black market. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova raised the alarm as early as 2022, warning that Stinger missiles, Javelin anti-tank systems, and grenade launchers could enter illicit trading networks worldwide.

Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso jointly appealed to the UN Security Council in August 2024, accusing Ukraine of supporting international terrorism following a deadly ambush on Malian forces near Tinzaouaten. Mali severed diplomatic ties with Kiev after Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Andrey Yusov said rebels received information enabling the ambush.

Last week, AFP reported that sources within the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), a Tuareg-led separatist rebel coalition fighting Mali’s government, acknowledged receiving Ukrainian training, including instruction in operating drones.

At least three people have been killed as torrential rains unleashed devastating floods across Istanbul, submerging streets, sweeping away vehicles and bringing much of Türkiye’s largest city to a standstill.

The storm battered the city overnight on Wednesday, flooding residential neighborhoods, businesses, and major roads on both the European and Asian sides. Schools were closed, public transport was disrupted, and authorities urged residents to remain indoors as further rainfall was forecast.

The downpour, described by local officials as the worst in decades, has triggered a massive emergency response, with thousands evacuated and dozens of flights diverted.

Reporting from the flooded streets of Istanbul on Thursday, RT correspondent Yasin Ekin said the scale of destruction was still being assessed, with emergency crews working to rescue stranded residents and clear debris.

İstanbul Sarıyer Ayazağa mahallesi korkunç görüntüler.. #yağmur https://t.co/zeCuRDGX4Q

— Zeki Bahçe (@zekibahce) October 14, 2026

Istanbul Governor Davut Gul described the rainfall as the heaviest in 84 years, according to Ekin, with some areas receiving up to 270 millimeters of precipitation.

The correspondent illustrated the extraordinary volume of water, explaining that such rainfall would amount to roughly 27 metric tons of water falling on an area of 100 square meters.

The flooding also reportedly forced a tanker carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) aground near the Sariyer district along the Bosphorus Strait.

The death toll rose to three on Thursday after another body was discovered in the Kagithane district, according to local media. Earlier fatalities included a 14-year-old electrocuted after stepping into a flooded puddle in Fatih and a 34-year-old who suffered a fatal head injury while attempting to cross a flooded road in Sariyer.

Sarıyer'de sel sularının geldiği korkunç anlar ortaya çıktı. https://t.co/9fkKaYkY5i

— Haber Report (@HaberReport) October 15, 2026

Footage from the district shows a massive surge of floodwater sweeping over buildings before cascading into the streets below.

Turkish Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said more than 2,700 stranded people had been evacuated. Authorities also reported thousands of emergency calls, dozens of landslides, and widespread damage to infrastructure.

Air traffic was severely disrupted, with 43 flights diverted from Istanbul Airport, while operations at Sabiha Gokcen Airport were temporarily suspended. Schools were closed across six provinces, and restrictions were imposed on motorcycles and scooters.

Istanbul’s geography and urban development have aggravated the disaster, with many residential and commercial areas built along former streambeds and valleys where floodwaters naturally accumulate. The combination of exceptionally heavy rainfall and construction in flood-prone areas left entire neighborhoods vulnerable.

Emergency workers continued clearing flooded streets on Thursday as authorities warned that further downpours could threaten already devastated districts.

The Russian Navy has successfully conducted a live-fire exercise in the Pacific, using a nuclear-powered submarine to strike sea and land targets with cruise missiles.

The Yasen M-class attack submarine Novosibirsk launched the weapons while submerged during a scheduled drill, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday.

According to the report, an Onyx cruise missile struck a simulated enemy warship at a distance of 170 km.

A Kalibr cruise missile was used to hit a land target at the Kura testing range on Kamchatka Peninsula, more than 1,200 km from the launch position.

The 130-meter-long Novosibirsk is the first submarine of the upgraded Yasen-M class to be built in series production.

Construction began in 2013, and the vessel was launched in 2019. It joined Russia’s Pacific Fleet in 2022 alongside the Knyaz Oleg nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine.

The Pentagon is developing plans to use the largest conventional bomb in the US arsenal in its war on Iran, CNN has reported, citing multiple sources in US President Donald Trump’s administration.

If approved, the strike would mark only the second combat use of the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, or MOAB, following its deployment in Afghanistan in 2017 during Trump’s first term.

According to CNN, such an operation would primarily serve as “psychological warfare” against Iranian forces while potentially boosting domestic support for the Trump administration. Sources suggested the weapon, nicknamed the “mother of all bombs,” could be dropped ahead of the US midterm elections in early November.

The MOAB is a massive 9,800 kg (21,600-pound) airburst munition designed to devastate a large area and intimidate enemy forces witnessing the explosion. While capable of destroying relatively unfortified targets, it is not a penetrating “bunker-buster” designed to destroy deeply buried installations, such as those used by Iran for critical military infrastructure.

“The MOAB is a massive information operation type weapon that is great for huge area clearance but not much else,” one of CNN’s sources said.

“POTUS has unfortunately put himself in a situation where he is almost compelled to do something,” the official added. With the president’s options limited, “you have to look at psychological effects for which the MOAB is well-equipped.”

In 2017, the US dropped a MOAB on a tunnel complex in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar Province, targeting militants identified by American officials as members of ISIS-K, a local offshoot of the now-defunct Islamic State terrorist group. Initial reports put the death toll at 36.

A series of recent US media reports has suggested that military officials are preparing options for renewed large-scale attacks on Iran, which would potentially be timed shortly before or after the midterm elections.

Meanwhile, Tehran retains the ability to threaten commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, putting economic pressure on Washington. Iran could also launch large-scale attacks against strategic economic targets in US-allied Gulf states if it faces an imminent defeat.

Russia and India have launched joint tri-service military exercise Indra-2026 involving army units, warships, and air force assets.

The bilateral military maneuvers are aimed at improving coordination and operational compatibility between forces of the two countries.

The opening ceremony for the land component was held at a Central Military District training ground in the Chelyabinsk Region on Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

The land phase of the exercise will run until October 23, with the two sides practicing command and control and carrying out a simulated joint operation against illegal armed groups. The Russian contingent will be made up primarily of troops from the 90th Guards Tank Division. 

In Vladivostok, the opening ceremony for the naval component was attended by the crews of the Russian corvette Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov and the Indian Navy frigate INS Sahyadri, which arrived in the Russian Pacific port several days earlier.

Russian and Indian officials said the exercise will contribute to stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

One segment will also include joint action against attacks by unmanned aerial vehicles and unmanned boats.

The air component will see Russian and Indian Air Force crews flying Su-30SM fighter aircraft fly drills against small low-flying targets, simulate strikes on carriers using short- and medium-range airborne weapons, and air combat practice at low and medium altitudes.

Crews flying Mi-8 helicopters will also practice inserting special forces and conducting search-and-rescue missions in difficult terrain.

A Swedish national has been detained in Russia, accused of entering the country to carry out sabotage and terrorist attacks against military facilities, the Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Thursday.

The man was detained in Sebezh District, Pskov Region, after illegally crossing the border from a neighboring country, the agency said. He allegedly intended to use a declared desire to join the Russian armed forces as cover for his mission.

In footage released by the FSB, he identified himself as Freddy Mikael Stalkrantz Lindholm, a 35-year-old from Stockholm. He said he signed a contract with Ukraine’s infamous neo-Nazi Aidar unit in Ternopol and underwent FPV drone training, also instructing others because of his previous experience.

“They used me because they wanted me to make terrorist attacks and diversion in Russia,” he said, referring to his Ukrainian military commanders.

The agency also released Ukrainian military documents bearing his name, including an appointment order assigning him to a drone command position in May, pay records, and a June discharge order stating that he failed his probationary period.

An earlier recruitment interview published on the International Legion’s Instagram account shows Lindholm describing how he decided to join the Ukrainian armed forces. Discussing his mental preparation for the deployment, he described taking a life as “the easy part,” but said he also had to prepare himself to give his own.

Investigators have opened a criminal case for illegal border crossing and are considering additional charges connected to terrorist activity and mercenary service.

The Swedish Foreign Ministry told Reuters it was aware of reports of the detention but was not currently involved in the case. Ukraine did not immediately comment.

At least 20,000 foreign mercenaries have fought for Kiev since 2022, Russian diplomat Yulia Zhdanova told the OSCE Forum for Security Co-operation on Wednesday, noting that most have come from the US, UK, Canada, and Georgia.

Moscow regards foreigners fighting for Kiev as mercenaries and has repeatedly warned that they are not entitled to prisoner-of-war protections under the Geneva Conventions. The Russian authorities have prosecuted hundreds, many in absentia.

On September 7, a Jamaican delegation delivered an unprecedented legal petition to London – directly to the Privy Council, a royal advisory body functioning as a court for issues related to the British Empire and Commonwealth realms.

In a historical irony, the petition was addressed to Charles III in his capacity as King of Jamaica, a role he still holds. The filing demands that the British Crown answer the call of its subjects in Jamaica, asking him, as their head of state and the inheritor of one of history’s darkest chapters, to formally define the legality of slave trade and his royal family’s role in it.

Long before this, in March 2022, the King’s elder son and heir, William the Prince of Wales, had also found himself cornered while touring the Caribbean, including Jamaica. While in the capital Kingston, he was greeted by protesters demanding accountability. He expressed his “profound sorrow” for Britain’s role in the slave trade, admitting that the atrocity will “forever stain our history.”

While he was still Crown Prince, King Charles III had already experienced his share of being chased by the same questions. In June 2022, while attending another Commonwealth summit in Kigali, Rwanda, he spoke openly about the “most painful period of our history,” stating that he could not describe the depths of his “personal sorrow” at the suffering caused by the slave trade and its enduring impact.

Before King Charles inherited the crown, his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, faced her own share of reckoning with the ghosts of empire. During her state visit to India in October 1997, the Queen faced intense controversy and calls for accountability when she visited the site of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar, ultimately stopping short of a formal apology while navigating a volatile political reception. Throughout her seven-decade reign, particularly during later milestones like her Diamond and Platinum Jubilees, her visits to former colonies or Commonwealth summits were increasingly overshadowed by organized protests demanding structural apologies and financial amends for Britain’s imperial history. Most notably, as republican movements gained ground in realms like the Caribbean, activists and academics continually deflected from her personal image as a “constitutional monarch” to challenge the enduring institutional wealth accumulated on the backs of enslaved ancestors.

It is worth noting that the Royal Archives are housed in Windsor Castle and managed separately from the UK National Archives with special arrangements for access. Clearly, the royal family retains extraordinary control over what the world can find out about its history of human trafficking, enslavement, and wealth theft across continents.

Take the Imperial State Crown itself, that glittering emblem of power. It is set with stones stolen from at least two continents, among them a diamond looted during the colonial era. So, the evidence is not only in the archives but on the monarch’s head. Worn by Charles as he left Westminster Abbey after his coronation in 2023, the crown carries the Cullinan II diamond, cut from the largest gem-quality diamond ever found, discovered in South Africa in 1905 and later given to King Edward VII by the colonial government while the territory was under British rule.

The Sovereign’s Sceptre holds the even larger Cullinan I, and some South Africans called for its return in the days before Charles III was coronated. Elsewhere in the Crown Jewels, the Koh-i-Noor was forcibly surrendered to Queen Victoria, Charles III’s great-great-grandmother, by Duleep Singh, a boy of ten, proclaimed as Maharaja of the Sikh Empire as a child. Regardless of the legal issues surrounding this “gift” or “treaty,” these were objects acquired under the shadow of imperial power, and the Crown has so far shown no appetite to discuss returning them.

The scale of the problem becomes even clearer when one considers what lies beyond the Crown Jewels in Britain’s museums. During a visit to India in 2010, then-Prime Minister David Cameron was asked about returning the Koh-i-Noor diamond. His response was revealing: “If you say yes to one you suddenly find the British Museum would be empty.” He rejected the idea of returning it, saying it would “have to stay put.”

What makes this ongoing reckoning different is that former colonies are no longer treating these grievances as isolated historical footnotes or polite talking points during diplomatic summits. Instead, African and Caribbean states, most of which were British colonies, have synchronized their political diplomatic and legal strategies into a coordinated structural challenge, moving from moral appeals to hard international law. This momentum crystallized at the United Nations General Assembly, where African and Caribbean nations spearheaded a landmark resolution classifying the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans as the gravest crime against humanity, establishing that historical atrocities generate continuing legal obligations.

Reinforced by continental milestones such as the African Union’s declaration centering reparations, amplified by frameworks like the Algiers Declaration, and spearheaded diplomatically by nations like Ghana, this coalition has upended traditional diplomatic containment. By weaponizing multilateral platforms, regional summits, and formal legal routes like the Privy Council petition, these nations are dismantling the monarchy’s decades-old strategy of deflection, exposing an imperial institution whose modern wealth remains directly tethered to an unreckoned past.

The British Crown’s desperate balancing act can no longer convince anybody let alone entire nations who were victimized. The monarchy can no longer hide behind the polite fiction that colonialism and the slave trade are closed chapters safely confined to history textbooks. When legal challenges bypass royal protocol to land directly on the doorstep of the Privy Council, and when international bodies codify chattel slavery as a continuing crime against humanity, the illusion of untouchability begins to crack.

At least 28 children and a teacher were killed when the roof of a private school collapsed during lessons in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar on Thursday. More than 50 others were injured, some critically.

The roof of an upper floor at the three-story Al-Khair School gave way, bringing down the ceilings of classrooms below. Students were attending lessons when the structure collapsed, trapping children and teachers beneath the rubble.

Rescue workers, assisted by police and local residents, pulled children from the debris and rushed the injured to Lady Reading Hospital, where an emergency was declared. The rescue operation concluded several hours later, with officials confirming that everyone trapped had been recovered.

A local resident, Samiullah Khan, helped rescue three young girls from the wreckage. His son, who attended the school, survived after stepping outside his classroom for a drink of water shortly before the collapse, he told the newspaper Dawn.

Look at the site of the collapsed school building in Peshawar, where all three floors have crumbled into rubble. Authorities say substandard construction materials were the main cause of the collapse. #PeshawarTragedy #SchoolTragedy #Pakistan https://t.co/IK5De81joV

— Sajjad Tarakzai (@SajjadTarakzai) October 15, 2026

Police have arrested the school’s owner as the authorities investigate the cause of the collapse. Peshawar police chief Mian Saeed Ahmed said the building was structurally weak and that additional construction had placed excessive weight on the roof. The provincial government has formed an inquiry committee.

A blaze has occurred at a Starlink satellite internet service facility near Bulgaria’s capital Sofia, Bulgarian Prime Minister Roumen Radev has announced.

In September a fire was reported at a data-relay station in Poland used by SpaceX, which serviced the Ukrainian military. Ukraine has relied heavily on Starlink during the conflict with Russia for battlefield communications and controlling drones.

Earlier this week, an MP for the opposition Democratic Bulgaria coalition, Ivaylo Mirchev, published a video he claimed shows masked men setting alight a facility used by Starlink outside Sofia, destroying 11 of its 17 antennas. 

🚨 Two masked men reportedly set fire to 11 of 17 antennas linked to SpaceX's Starlink network near Sofia, Bulgaria. via WarSurv https://t.co/RgvLK4sasG

— Post Open Source (@CocoPostel) October 14, 2026

Radev confirmed the incident to the Bulgarian parliament on Wednesday, but declined to say if it was a result of an arson attack.

“An investigation is underway. Just a little more patience, and there will be a result,” the prime minister said, urging other government officials against disclosing any details of the probe until it’s concluded. “If the specific findings are revealed, we will not achieve the outcome we are aiming for,” he added.

However, Democratic Bulgaria MP Bozhidar Bozhanov wasted no time waiting for the results of the investigation of the blaze to lash out at Moscow. “Why are you afraid to name Russia? Why don’t you act like Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk,” he asked Radev.

The prime minister responded by saying that Bozhanov apparently has “a crystal ball and therefore knows who the perpetrator is.”

Tusk previously called the fire at Wola Krobowska outside Warsaw last month “another act of hybrid warfare.” Polish special services coordinator Tomasz Siemoniak said this week that there was “no doubt that Russian intelligence services are behind this act of sabotage,” but provided no proof to the accusations. Two Turkish nationals have been arrested in Germany in connection with the incident.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian officials and frontline commanders complained that Starlink terminals had suddenly stopped working when drones flew faster than 100 mph, disrupting some combat missions. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk denied giving any instructions to restrict Kiev’s access to the service, saying that doing so is the prerogative of the American military and US President Donald Trump personally.

The problems occurred as Trump is working to increase pressure on Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky to halt strikes on Russian oil refineries, which he blames for surging global energy prices.

Last month, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that allowing Starlink to be used to facilitate Ukrainian strikes deep into Russian territory would be “a very harmful, potentially dangerous and misconceived step.” Moscow has all the means to respond to such actions, he warned.

Videos online have captured a fire that broke out at an oil refinery in Russia’s Ryazan Region following a major overnight Ukrainian drone raid.

The Russian Defense Ministry said air defenses and military aircraft shot down four Flamingo cruise missiles and 69 fixed-wing drones between 4 AM and 7 AM local time on Thursday. The blaze was caused by the debris of a fallen UAV, it added. Ryazan Region lies less than 200 kilometers (124 miles) southeast of Moscow.

The attack came as Ukraine continued its strikes on Russian oil infrastructure for a second consecutive day, with two oil refineries – in Ryazan and Saratov Regions – being targeted by UAVs on Wednesday, according to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak.

The Russian military has warned that it will respond in kind to the strikes by Ukraine. Novak earlier said that Kiev had shown no signs of moving towards an energy truce, which US President Donald Trump is trying to broker.

On Thursday, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky said Kiev will resume attacks on Russian oil refineries after a three-day pause he introduced under pressure from Trump.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said later in the day that “in fact, there was no moratorium on the part of Ukraine. Strikes on our oil refineries and energy facilities continued throughout this whole period. Therefore, there is nothing new here.”

Kenya has confirmed a second case of Ebola, with a family member of the country’s first patient testing positive for the virus, the Health Ministry announced on Wednesday. The latest infection brings the total number of confirmed cases to two, including one death.

The new patient, a 39-year-old man, had already been placed in quarantine after being identified as a close contact of the first case. He developed symptoms on Tuesday, including fever, fatigue and joint pain, and was subsequently tested for the virus. The man has been transferred to a designated treatment facility, where he is receiving supportive care.

Health authorities said the two cases are linked and there is currently no evidence that the virus has spread into the wider community.

The ministry has identified 128 people who came into contact with the first patient, of whom 113 had been traced as of Tuesday. Among them, 108 are undergoing quarantine in Kenya, with daily health checks over a 21-day period. Another five contacts are outside the country.

Kenya has also banned the repatriation of bodies of people who died from Ebola abroad under new public health regulations introduced on Monday. The rules also impose strict requirements for handling and burying the bodies of Ebola victims to prevent further transmission of the virus.

Russia is in discussions with Bangladesh to build a new phase of high-capacity units at the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant near Dhaka, Rosatom CEO Aleksey Likhachev said on the sidelines of the Russian Energy Week forum.

Rooppur, built in collaboration with state-owned Rosatom, is the South Asian country’s first nuclear plant. Its first unit is on track to be connected to the national power grid by the end of November.

”We are primarily talking about a possible additional phase of large units,” Likhachev told reporters. “Although our Bangladeshi friends are also discussing small-capacity units and a research reactor with us, the main trend for future development, in my view, is increasing the capacity of the Rooppur NPP.”

He said Bangladesh has asked for proposals from Rosatom for “small nuclear power plants and floating nuclear power plants.”

Rosatom expects to begin commissioning the second unit of the Rooppur plant next year, Likhachev said. The first unit attained criticality – where a self-sustaining chain reaction occurs – on Sunday.

Russia is providing equipment, nuclear fuel, and engineering assistance for the project, and the plant is expected to meet up to 12% of Bangladesh’s electricity demand when completed.

Niger has condemned France’s expulsion of two embassy security officers and their families, including a man who the authorities said was left paraplegic after being stabbed during a mission carried out with French forces more than a decade ago.

Justice Minister Alio Daouda described the decision as a “serious and unacceptable act of ingratitude” in a government statement broadcast on national television on Tuesday. He accused Paris of circumventing its own courts to remove one of the men.

The officer, Abdoul-Razak Ibrahim Moussa Toro, was stabbed in the spine during a mission in 2014 in Diffa, southeastern Niger, and evacuated to France for treatment, according to the statement. The minister said French partners financed the operation and provided fuel, logistics, and allowances.

“This is how France thanks those who served alongside it,” Daouda said. “It solicits men, recruits them and finances them. Then, when they fall, it throws them out with their families,” he added.

Six days later, the Versailles Administrative Court annulled the original departure order and instructed the French Foreign Ministry to reconsider his situation, according to Daouda. “This is not an administrative error. It is a deliberate violation of the rule of law,” he said.

A French diplomatic source told AFP that the two men were intelligence agents whose presence was no longer justified because bilateral cooperation had ended. Le Monde reported, citing a Nigerien source, that one was suspected of monitoring opposition figures in France. The French Foreign Ministry has yet to publicly comment.

In August 2023, Niamey ordered French Ambassador Sylvain Itte to leave amid a standoff over France’s refusal to recognize the military leadership.

Last month, Niger accused France of inciting an August 29 mutiny in which soldiers attacked Niamey’s international airport, the adjoining Air Base 101, and the presidential palace. The authorities said loyalist forces backed by Russia’s Africa Corps regained control of the base. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot rejected the allegations as “pure fantasies.”

Ukraine will never repay the billions of euros lent to it by the EU to keep it afloat in the conflict with Russia, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said. Slovakia is refusing to partake in another massive financing package for Kiev.

Speaking in Brussels on Wednesday, Fico noted that the existing €90 billion ($101 billion) EU loan package had already proved insufficient. The sum was intended to meet Ukraine’s needs in 2026–2027, with €60 billion allocated to the military and €30 billion to budget support. Under the agreement, Ukraine is required to repay the loan only after receiving Russian reparations – something that Moscow has categorically ruled out.

Fico said that the EU is now considering another loan, stressing that while Slovakia would not prevent other EU countries from providing additional funding, it would seek an opt-out for itself.

Under Fico, Slovakia has remained skeptical of Ukraine assistance as well as the country’s push to join NATO, and has halted government weapons shipments while consistently calling for peace talks.

Fico’s remarks come after Ukraine’s revelation in August of an unexpected $27 billion defense funding shortfall, reportedly catching European officials off guard. Many are said to doubt whether Kiev is overstating its needs.

Brussels refused to validate the figure, subsequently rejecting Kiev’s request to bring forward funding earmarked for 2027. Instead, it is demanding progress on reforms – including those meant to tackle rampant corruption – to unlock assistance already available.

Earlier this month, Vladimir Zelensky announced that Ukraine would be able to cover its budget deficit through austerity measures and spending reallocations. A Ukrainian government source told RBC-Ukraine that some funding would be found by cutting weapons expenditures. Kiev’s European backers had also agreed to work toward arranging for weapons production while shifting payments into January, the outlet reported.

The Estonian government reportedly plans to seek neighboring Latvia’s cooperation in shutting down a gas pipeline that serves as a backup supply route to Kaliningrad Region, the Russian exclave that Western officials recently called a strategic vulnerability for Moscow.

The government of Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal was surprised to learn that local operator Elering was maintaining the pipeline in working condition, Eesti Ekspress reported on Wednesday. Tallinn now intends to work with Riga to close the route, the outlet said.

The Estonian section of the pipeline consists of two parallel pipes, each 70 centimeters in diameter, running just 22 km through Voru County in the southeast of the country. The connection is clearly marked on a pipeline map published on Elering’s website. According to Eesti Ekspress, it was last used in fall 2024.

Officials in several NATO members, including Estonia, have recently described Kaliningrad Region as a Russian vulnerability due to its geographic position. Moscow has warned that any escalation where the US-led military bloc threatened Russia’s territorial integrity, including that of its westernmost region, could result in a nuclear war.

Kaliningrad’s principal overland gas supply route is the Minsk-Vilnius-Kaunas-Kaliningrad pipeline, which first entered service in 1985 and has an annual capacity of 2.5 billion cubic meters. Russia’s Gazprom renewed its transit agreement with Lithuania’s Amber Grid in 2025, securing the arrangement through the end of 2030.

Nevertheless, Moscow has long considered the Baltic states unreliable transit partners, fearing they could cut off supplies for political reasons. In 2019, Gazprom commissioned an LNG receiving terminal near Kaliningrad, complementing the region’s underground gas storage facilities. The maritime supply system uses the Marshal Vasilevskiy, an LNG carrier equipped to regasify its cargo.

Oman overtook the US as India’s largest supplier of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in September, as disruptions to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz reshaped New Delhi’s gas imports.

Overall, India’s LNG purchases were 7% higher than a year earlier despite a sharp decline in supplies from Qatar, according to commodity analytics firm Kpler.

India imported around 590,000 tons of LNG from Oman during the month, compared with 340,000 tons from the US, which had been its largest supplier in August. Nigeria emerged as the second-largest supplier, followed by the US and the UAE.

The decline in American shipments to India came as European buyers stepped up purchases ahead of winter, attracting LNG cargoes that might otherwise have gone to Asia. More than half of US LNG exports went to Europe in September, according to financial data provider LSEG, cited by Reuters.

The shift also reflects India’s efforts to secure supplies outside the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has been severely disrupted since the US-Israeli war with Iran began in February. Unlike Qatar and the UAE, Oman’s LNG exports do not pass through the strait.

Qatar, previously India’s largest LNG supplier, saw its September shipments fall nearly 90% year-on-year. Iranian attacks on its Ras Laffan energy complex in March damaged production facilities, while restrictions on shipping continue to limit deliveries.

A blaze has broken out at an oil refinery in Russia’s Ryazan Region as a result of a major overnight Ukrainian drone attack, local governor Pavel Malkov has written on Telegram.

In recent days, Kiev has continued its strikes on Russian energy infrastructure despite US President Donald Trump’s attempts to broker an “energy truce.”

A warehouse and several vehicles belonging to another local enterprise were also damaged during the raid, Malkov said.

However, there were no casualties, according to preliminary information, the governor stressed. The extent of damage is currently being assessed, with emergency services working in the affected areas, he added.

The Russian Defense Ministry said in a later statement that the Ukrainian attack on an oil refinery in Ryazan Region occurred between 4 AM and 7 AM local time.

A total of four long-range Flamingo cruise missiles and 69 fixed-wing UAVs, fired by Kiev, had been shot down by air defenses and military aircraft, the statement read.

The fire at the facility had been caused by the debris of an intercepted drone, the ministry said.

Vladimir Zelensky reacted by saying that the announcement “was news” to him, but expressed a readiness to stop the strikes if Russia does the same.

Zelensky also said that Kiev would introduce a three-day pause in attacks on Russian energy infrastructure. However, the pledge was violated on Wednesday, with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak saying that two oil refineries – in Ryazan and Saratov Regions – were targeted by Ukrainian drones.

In order to alleviate the situation, Trump eased restrictions on Russia’s diesel exports following a phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, last week.

The US president accused Zelensky of seeking to “make problems” for the US and the whole world by attacking Russian oil refineries and suggested that Ukraine needed a “new president.”

“He goes and hits the diesel fuel. He can do whatever he wants, but he can’t do that. He’d better damn well stop,” the US president said.

Zelensky blamed Trump for “betrayal” of Ukraine and suggested that the actual reason for the global energy shortage was the US war on Iran.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday in the day that “in fact, there was no moratorium on the part of Ukraine. Strikes on our oil refineries and energy facilities continued throughout this whole period. Therefore, there is nothing new here.”

The Trump administration’s “active attempts” to settle the Ukraine conflict “are being crushed by the unwillingness of the Kiev regime and Zelensky, in particular, to agree to peace,” Peskov added.

Russian officials have said repeatedly that Moscow seeks a long-term settlement of the Ukraine conflict rather than a temporary truce, which would be used by Zelensky’s government to rearm and regroup its forces.

Nine of the largest US banks discriminated against customers over their political views and business activities, including conservative organizations and individuals, the Treasury Department’s banking regulator has said. 

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) reviewed the policies of JPMorgan Chase Bank, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo Bank, US Bank, Capital One, PNC Bank, TD Bank, and BMO Bank under President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at ensuring “fair access” to banking services for all Americans. Trump has long accused Democrats of weaponizing institutions against his donors and supporters.

The review found that between 2020 and September 2025, all nine banks “have denied, debanked and discriminated against customers and lawful businesses,” Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said on Wednesday.

According to the OCC, the banks closed accounts and denied financial services to customers whose activities risk managers considered “controversial,” including on issues such as abortion and LGBTQ rights. In some cases, bank employees openly stated that the activities of certain groups conflicted with their institutions’ values. Other decisions were reportedly based on “social risk” considerations and “polarizing” public opinion on issues such as gun rights.

The review examined nearly 100,000 complaints and about 420,000 pages of documents

The regulator cited a case in February 2021 in which a payment processor owned by an unidentified bank closed the account of a merchant selling merchandise promoting Trump and his Make America Great Again (MAGA) brand.

The report also found that the banks maintained public and internal policies restricting services to companies involved in Arctic oil and gas exploration, the construction or expansion of coal-fired power plants, the sale of certain firearms and tobacco products, and the construction or operation of detention centers.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott told Fox News Digital that denying banking services for religious or political reasons was “simply un-American” and pledged that the committee would take action.

Trump himself has accused major banks of politically motivated debanking. He sued Capital One in 2025 and JPMorgan Chase in 2026, alleging that they closed accounts belonging to him and his businesses following the January 2021 Capitol riot because of his political views. JPMorgan has denied political discrimination, maintaining that account closures are based on legal and regulatory risks.

A container ship sank after striking a mine in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, amid a wave of attacks on shipping in the region and stalled talks between the US and Iran. More than 20 oil tankers and other vessels have been attacked this month.

The Singapore-registered container ship GFS Pride caught fire and later sank. All 21 crew members were rescued, according to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.

Photos and videos shared on social media show smoke rising from the listing vessel and dozens of shipping containers floating in the water.

A second Singapore-registered vessel, the GFS Giselle, was struck the same day, sustaining hull damage. It managed to leave the area under its own power, with no injuries reported among the crew.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said the GFS Pride, which was carrying more than 2,500 containers, sank while sailing along what it described as an “unauthorized and dangerous route.”

“Local vessels and fishermen must exercise the utmost safety when navigating this route so they do not collide with containers floating on the water,” the IRGC Navy said in a statement carried by Press TV.

BREAKING: Iran announces a large UAE-owned container ship carrying more than 2,500 containers hit a naval mine, exploded and sank this morning in the US-backed southern Omani corridor of the Strait of Hormuz. It is the first vessel sunk by a mine in the war. Initial reports indicate the cargo ship was carrying luxury perfumes and iPhones from Dubai.

— The Hormuz Letter (@HormuzLetter) October 14, 2026

Top Iranian negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf reiterated earlier this month that Iran would not reopen the vital waterway, which normally handles around a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil and LNG trade, until the US accepts Tehran’s terms. The conditions include lifting sanctions and releasing frozen Iranian funds.

🇮🇷 Footage from the 2,500-container ship that was attacked and sunk in the Strait of Hormuz. Now you know why the insurance rates are so high... Writer: Samuel https://t.co/YSNxr87mT1

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 14, 2026

The US Navy said it had guided more than 1,600 vessels through the Strait of Hormuz between May and mid-September along routes that Iran considers illegal.

On Saturday, US forces struck and disabled the Panama-flagged bulk carrier Ocean Molica, which US Central Command (CENTCOM) said had attempted to violate the blockade of Iranian ports.

U.S. Forces Disable Cargo Vessel Attempting to Violate Blockade TAMPA, Fla. — U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces disabled a commercial cargo vessel in the Gulf of Oman, Oct. 10, after the ship’s crew ignored repeated warnings and attempted to run the ongoing naval blockade against Iran. A U.S. military fighter jet struck the stern of Panama-flagged M/V Ocean Molica (also known as the “Arika Sun”) with a precision munition, fully disabling the ship’s propulsion without harming the crew. The large cargo vessel was attempting to transit regional waters after having previously departed an Iranian port. CENTCOM forces resumed America’s blockade against all ships entering or departing Iranian ports on July 14. Four commercial vessels have been disabled and 135 ships have been turned around during three months of strict enforcement. Additionally, U.S. forces have destroyed 10 tankers linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' multibillion-dollar shadow network over the same period. All mariners are advised to heed blockade warnings from CENTCOM forces. Crews should also continue to monitor Notice to Mariners broadcasts and contact U.S. naval forces on bridge-to-bridge channel 16 when operating in the Gulf of Oman and Strait of Hormuz approaches.

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) October 11, 2026

On Wednesday, CENTCOM released a video showing an October 6 strike on a sailing vessel that it claimed had been “conducting surveillance and targeting the US Navy ships” on behalf of Iran.

On Oct. 6, U.S. forces destroyed an Iranian-affiliated dhow conducting surveillance and targeting U.S. Navy ships in the Gulf of Oman. Over the past seven months, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has continued to indiscriminately target thousands of civilian mariners transiting regional waters in addition to U.S. Navy warships. Crew members were safely removed prior to destruction of the dhow. Repatriation efforts are ongoing.

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) October 14, 2026

The Russia-US diesel deal has already helped lower American fuel prices and could pave the way for broader economic cooperation between Moscow and Washington, Russian presidential aide Kirill Dmitriev has said.

Speaking to RT on Wednesday, Dmitriev, who also heads Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, described the agreement as a win-win for both countries and a “great help to global markets.”

“Diesel futures in New York fell by 5% on the announcement of this cooperation between Russia and the US,” he said.

The agreement was announced on Friday following a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump. The US Treasury subsequently issued a temporary sanctions waiver allowing Russian diesel to be sold, delivered and imported into the US until April 7, 2027.

Trump said Moscow would immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel to US and global markets, followed by another 500,000 tons in November and one million tons shortly thereafter. Up to three million additional tons could become available “within a short period of time,” he added.

The arrangement is aimed at easing soaring fuel prices amid global supply disruptions caused by the US-Israeli war with Iran.

Dmitriev argued that the immediate market response demonstrated the economic benefits of cooperation and the costs of maintaining sanctions against Moscow.

“We are seeing that lifting [US] sanctions on Russian diesel is having an immediate positive effect, including for American farmers [and] the American economy,” he said.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak recently estimated that the bloc had spent more than $320 billion on Russian energy since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, despite claiming to have sharply reduced its imports.

Trump similarly lashed out at Brussels in a Truth Social post on Monday, insisting that he had “made the right choice for the American People.”

Novak has welcomed Washington’s decision as a step toward stabilizing global energy markets and restoring normal trade. He also announced that Moscow would begin immediately lifting its own restrictions on diesel exports.

Elon Musk has denied instructing his company SpaceX to abruptly restrict Starlink and Starshield satellite communications services used by Ukrainian forces to operate drones.

Ukrainian officials and frontline commanders said terminals suddenly stopped working overnight Tuesday into Wednesday when drones flew faster than 100 mph, disrupting some combat missions. The problems with Starshield, the military-grade counterpart to SpaceX’s Starlink service, occurred as US President Donald Trump was pressuring Ukraine to halt strikes on Russian oil refineries, which he blamed for surging energy prices.

“Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS,” Musk wrote on X on Wednesday in response to criticism from Ukraine. He had earlier suggested that the disruption might have been “a mistake” and said he was working to restore connectivity.

Musk also said that Starlink should be used only for civilian and defensive purposes, arguing that using it for offensive operations would be “inappropriate for a commercial company.”

Although Trump has not commented directly on the restrictions, a senior US official told Axios that his administration had nothing to do with the disruption of Starlink services.

Ukrainian officials also said they had received no advance warning from their Western partners before Russian missile strikes on Kiev on two consecutive nights, Monday and Tuesday. According to media reports, US officials attributed the failure to detect the missile launches to bad weather, an explanation their Ukrainian counterparts reportedly found hard to believe.

Asked by British talk show host Piers Morgan on Wednesday whether he had been “betrayed” by the Trump administration, Zelensky replied, “Yes.”

“It’s a pity that we are losing a strong partner,” he added.

Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Fyodorov said Wednesday evening that Starlink connectivity at speeds of up to 100 mph was being restored, but urged the removal of speed restrictions on Starshield altogether.

Ukrainian media reported on Thursday that the operation of Starshield systems had been fully restored. Sources within the country’s Ministry of Defense said military units confirmed that communications were back online while officials continue to investigate the reasons for the restrictions.

Russia has argued that Ukraine would use a ceasefire without preconditions to regroup and replenish its forces. “We want not a ceasefire but a lasting peace, and we are ready to do everything possible to achieve it,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

The agreement to supply Russian diesel fuel to the United States has made a considerable political impact, and it comes amid another escalation of the Ukraine conflict during which both sides have been exchanging large-scale missile and drone strikes.

Meanwhile, the European Union has approved its 22nd package of sanctions against Russia, while Washington has adopted another round of punitive measures under the so-called Hellish Sanctions Act.

Yet against this backdrop, the US Treasury has issued a general license authorizing transactions involving the sale, delivery, unloading and import of Russian diesel fuel until April 2027, which, at first glance, appears extraordinary. 

In reality, however, such exemptions are a familiar feature of American sanctions policy as they illustrate a fundamental paradox of the US system: exceptionally severe restrictions coexist with considerable flexibility when Washington’s own interests are at stake.

On one hand, sanctions against Russia, particularly those targeting its energy sector, have become increasingly entrenched, and the latest legislation makes their removal considerably more difficult, adding to an extensive framework of federal laws, presidential orders and administrative regulations accumulated over recent years.

The latest exemption is particularly revealing because the administration didn’t need to invoke the waiver provisions contained in the new legislation, given that Section 115 of the Lindsey Graham Act, for example, permits exemptions provided the administration submits a written justification to Congress, so instead, the Treasury employed a much simpler mechanism.

Last week, Bradley Smith, director of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), signed a general license permitting the diesel transactions. Formally, therefore, the decision was taken not by President Donald Trump, or even by the Treasury secretary, but by a specialized department within the department.

There’s nothing unusual about this procedure. Under the sanctions program targeting what Washington calls Russia’s “malicious activities,” more than 100 general licenses have been issued covering a wide range of transactions, meaning another license is hardly a sensation.

Nor should it be mistaken for the lifting of sanctions because general licenses typically have limited validity and can be revoked before their expiry and a change in the political climate, a shift in Washington’s priorities, or an influx of imported diesel into the American market could be sufficient grounds for withdrawing the exemption.

There are precedents for licenses remaining in force for years. During the improvement in US-Belarusian relations in the 2010s, several major Belarusian enterprises benefited from exemptions that effectively suspended certain restrictions, but when relations deteriorated again in the early 2020s, those licenses were withdrawn.

No sanctions have been lifted and Washington has merely employed an established administrative mechanism that can be reversed at any moment.

Nevertheless, the episode demonstrates something important about American sanctions policy in that even as Congress seeks to make restrictions against Russia increasingly permanent, the executive branch retains considerable room for maneuver.

The US can impose unprecedented economic restrictions while simultaneously creating exceptions whenever its interests demand them.

The legal machinery is already in place, but what ultimately determines how it is used is political will.

This article was first published by Kommersant, and was translated and edited by the RT team

Former Israeli intelligence chief Ronen Bar has sued Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for defamation, accusing him of ignoring warnings ahead of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack and attempting to shift the blame for the security failures.

Bar, who headed Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security agency during the assault, filed the three-million-shekel (nearly $1 million) lawsuit on Wednesday.

Netanyahu had accused Bar of withholding intelligence and failing to alert troops or evacuate attendees of the Nova music festival. Bar rejected the allegations, arguing that Netanyahu was attempting to deflect responsibility for the attack, which left around 1,200 people dead and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s subsequent military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 74,300 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.

According to the lawsuit, Shin Bet officers began sharing intelligence about unusual Hamas activity with the military late on October 6 and issued a warning at 3:03 am. Netanyahu’s military secretariat was updated at 3:55 am, while Bar’s chief of staff briefed his military secretary shortly after 6 am. Bar denied speaking directly with Israel’s military chief or head of military intelligence that night, contrary to Netanyahu’s account.

However, he maintained that Netanyahu had been repeatedly alerted to the risk. Bar cited a February 2023 letter warning that Israel’s internal divisions and instability in the Palestinian territories could embolden its adversaries. In July, he said he had personally raised the prospect of an attack, cautioning that intelligence agencies might not be able to predict it.

The filing describes further warnings in September and early October about Hamas’s growing capabilities. Bar also alleged that Netanyahu repeatedly rejected or delayed proposals to target senior Hamas figures, favoring a policy of “quiet at any cost” in Gaza.

According to the lawsuit, the prime minister continued allowing Qatari money into the enclave despite warnings that humanitarian funds were reaching Hamas’ military wing.

Netanyahu rejected the claims, saying Bar could have contacted him through a secure emergency line. Bar said Netanyahu never provided him with his personal phone number.

Netanyahu also said he had submitted nearly 1,000 documents challenging Bar’s account.

The lawsuit follows reports that Netanyahu received advance warnings from foreign governments. Haaretz reported in September that UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed had alerted him to a potential major Hamas operation ten days before the assault. Netanyahu’s office dismissed the allegation as an “absolute lie.”

The Atlantic and the Wall Street Journal have separately reported warnings from Egyptian officials, while the New York Times revealed that Israeli intelligence had obtained a Hamas battle plan known as Jericho Wall more than a year earlier. Netanyahu has denied receiving warnings from Egypt or being shown the Hamas plan.

Germany plans to make households and businesses pay for a national emergency gas reserve costing more than €3 billion over ten years, German media reported Wednesday, citing draft legislation.

First proposed in July, the 24 TWh reserve would equal 10% of Germany’s storage capacity, or two weeks’ winter consumption, protecting against import disruptions.

The Economy Ministry initially proposed funding it through household and industrial levies rather than the federal budget, but the plan stalled after governing coalition lawmakers rejected this notion, citing already excessive energy costs. Industry associations also demanded state funding. However, media reports claim that despite the backlash, the ministry is pressing ahead with its initial plan.

An October 12 draft leaked to Handelsblatt and other outlets estimates the reserve at €3.08 billion ($3.4 billion) over ten years, enough to replace Germany’s largest gas import facility for 30 days. Unlike seasonal storage, the government-controlled stockpile would be off-limits commercially, reserved for crises including sabotage and infrastructure failures. It would not lower gas prices.

Energy Minister Katherina Reiche previously considered budget funding or a hybrid model. However, severe budget constraints reportedly prompted the ministry to stick to its initial plan of 100% consumer funding. Frankfurter Rundschau reported that the draft has already been submitted for interministerial coordination. However, it remains far from becoming law, with government approval, parliamentary scrutiny, and votes still ahead, and discussions in the Bundestag over a possible hybrid financing model ongoing.

Julia Verlinden, deputy parliamentary group leader of the Greens in the Bundestag, has criticized the move, telling DPA that citizens would feel the impact of the ambitious gas plans “directly in their wallets.”

Germany’s post-Russian gas predicament

Germany has faced years of severe energy pressure since abandoning Russian supplies following the Ukraine conflict’s escalation in 2022. Alternative imports have sharply raised costs for energy-intensive manufacturers. Berlin has spent approximately €50 billion ($58 billion) cushioning soaring prices since cutting Russian gas imports, Die Süddeutsche Zeitung and Bild reported last month.

The US war on Iran and disruption of the Strait of Hormuz have intensified pressure. Although most German LNG comes from the US, the strait’s effective closure disrupted nearly 20% of global LNG supply, driving wholesale prices higher and undermining commercial incentives to buy and store gas.

Meanwhile, Germany’s conventional gas reserves have been under mounting pressure ahead of winter. Following a sluggish summer refilling season, they are reportedly hovering around 60% capacity, an unusually low level for October. German network operators earlier called the EU’s November 1 target of 80%-90% “virtually unattainable.” In September, Berlin even took the unusual step of ordering state-owned SEFE to purchase and inject 8 TWh to shore up winter supplies.

Soaring bills have deepened political divisions. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has gained traction by calling for a return to cheaper Russian energy, while Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s increasingly unpopular coalition faces pressure over costly gas-fired backup plants and climate-neutrality commitments.

Nord Stream, drones and the ‘Russian threat’

The proposed reserve’s focus on sabotage is particularly notable given the 2022 Nord Stream bombings, which severed key routes for Russian gas to Germany and compounded the country’s energy crisis. Berlin initially refrained from assigning blame, but in July 2026, German prosecutors charged former Ukrainian military officer Sergey Kuznetsov, alleging the attack was carried out by individuals acting on behalf of Ukrainian state bodies. Kiev denies involvement, while Moscow has blamed the West.

Moscow calls Western energy sanctions illegal and counterproductive, arguing that they redirect Russian exports while forcing Europeans toward costlier supplies. Russia has repeatedly offered to cover shortages and resume deliveries but says it received no response. Kremlin economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev warned earlier this year that EU countries would “inevitably beg” for Russian gas as prices rise.

Admitting Ukraine to the EU would amount to “hara-kiri” for the bloc and inflict immense damage on France, right-wing French politician Marine Le Pen has warned, using the Japanese term for ritual suicide.

Le Pen has long criticized military and financial support for Ukraine, repeatedly pledging to end France’s direct aid to Kiev and calling for sharp cuts to EU-wide assistance.

The politician has emerged as the frontrunner in France’s 2027 presidential race, according to the latest opinion polls, and is projected to defeat both left-wing and centrist rivals in potential runoffs.

Le Pen made the remarks in an interview with the Financial Times published on Wednesday, arguing against Kiev’s longstanding ambition to join the bloc. Making Ukraine a member would be tantamount to “committing hara-kiri,” a scenario bound to result in “absolutely huge economic losses” and the effective loss of sovereignty for France, Le Pen stated.

Le Pen also reiterated her position on aid to Ukraine, arguing that France, as well as the EU as a whole, could no longer afford to bankroll Kiev.

“The honest thing to do with Zelensky is to tell him, to warn him, in fact, that, listen, we can’t do more, we can’t manage more. [The EU] has already done €90bn of loans; that’s €18bn for France. €18bn is really a lot,” Le Pen told FT.

Separately, she made similar remarks to the Dutch VRT NWS broadcaster, insisting that Paris must tell Zelensky it “can no longer provide this financial assistance” and that the Ukrainian leader should seek monetary help elsewhere. “Perhaps there are other EU countries that are in better financial shape,” Le Pen said, without specifying any candidates for footing France’s bill on Ukraine.

In nanny states, men become state-dependent tradbros whose solution to an inadequate allowance is to pitch a fit, women get infantilized, and kids become insufferable. But what happens when someone dares to step out of line?

Enter Louise Montagnon – a 22-year-old master’s student, right-wing activist, and recent municipal National Rally candidate from Bordeaux, who has been all over French media debating the young left-wing activists indulging in synchronized tantrums across France, some burning their schools down to protest the lack of educational space. When a country is sufficiently infantilized, you may as well send young people to fight each other on ideological front lines over problems ginned up mostly by grey-haired men. 

Montagnon is refusing to sing the dominant tune. “You are the useful idiots of this movement,” she told 17-year-old Erwan on television. He made his name by publicly draping himself over left-wing leader Jean-Luc Melenchon and kissing him on the cheek, having already mastered the politician’s mannerisms while explaining why student life sucked at his slum of a Parisian school near Montmartre. The academy boasts a majestic courtyard and a €120 million renovation project. His particular hardship was having to put in full days.

Montagnon’s message was that the kid hadn’t seen much of the working world and might want to compare class timetables with her before declaring himself a victim. Her argument is dangerous to the movement because if one person can manage, then why can’t you? And when that person is a young woman, the reality becomes especially inconvenient for young men.

Which would explain the violent reaction to this young woman’s mere existence. “Last year, I had to leave my classes during the year because it was no longer possible for safety reasons,” she said during a media appearance. “When you arrive at university and there are 80 people waiting to kick you out, you are no longer safe.” She also explained that during student elections, the library staff wanted her to leave despite what she described as about 200 “brainless leftists” waiting for her outside.

Women’s groups lament the Taliban’s exclusion of girls from education, yet appear conspicuously absent when a young woman in France says that intimidation has interfered with her university life. Women should be able to study and participate in public life without being threatened into submission – but only subject to ideological approval or an adequate score on the most superficial diversity scale, apparently.

Montagnon’s offence is actively denouncing the left-wing status quo, exercising her democratic right to dissent. The very sort of independent thinking that feminism is supposed to celebrate – until the independent thinker backs the wrong party or causes.

She fails the longstanding litmus test to qualify for sisterly support. Feminism has become entangled with identity politics in much of the movement, to the point where a woman on the right can demonstrate intellectual independence, self-determination, and meritocratic qualities, yet still be treated as a threat to the ideological monoculture that became synonymous with the feminist movement ever since it sprang up around left-wing actions in the civil rights era.

There’s something ironically paternalistic about a movement that champions women’s freedom while demonstrating – through its action or inaction – that it reserves the right to decide which of them are valid.

Turns out that the system that Montagnon is being told to navigate may not even be capable of delivering the meritocratic returns that her hard work warrants. Not anymore. Just look at France’s finances.

The country’s debt has climbed well above the EU’s 60%-of-GDP reference value. Now the government needs to rummage around in the couch cushions to find savings in the hope that ordinary people won’t notice, by scratching a few bucks here and there from health-care reimbursements and by de-indexing pension spending from inflation. Seems that the best outcome that Montagnon can hope for is a worthy spot in a broken system that won’t parasitize her hard work too much.

Montagnon also happens to have stumbled upon institutional feminism’s most shameful secret: the sisterhood is universal in its advertising, but highly selective in its customer service. And particularly as the broke nanny state fails in its effort to placate the handout-insistent masses, women’s liberation should mean embracing and championing independent, freedom-minded women on the right actively seeking to break those shackles. Otherwise, we’re just arguing over who gets to hold the leash.

The trial of Nord Stream bombing suspect Sergey Kuznetsov is underway in Germany, and the Ukrainian veteran’s defense team have revealed their strategy: say nothing and blame Russia. The entire trial, after just one day, has begun to look more like a managed discussion than an inquisition.

What happened to Nord Stream in September 2022?

On September 26, 2022, a seismometer on the Danish island of Bornholm detected two spikes consistent with underwater explosions – one just after 2 AM, and another just after 7 PM. Danish and Swedish authorities then determined that both Nord Stream 1 lines had been destroyed and one Nord Stream 2 line damaged roughly 60 km northeast of Bornholm, while an explosion around 25 km southeast of the island had destroyed the other Nord Stream 2 line.

Both Nord Stream lines were opposed by Ukraine, and by every US president since George W. Bush.

RT covered the competing Nord Stream narratives in depth here – pulling apart the means, motive, and opportunity that the real culprit had to carry out the attack.

What is Sergey Kuznetsov accused of?

Kuznetsov arrived at the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court of Hamburg under heavy security on Wednesday. The hearing is the first of 24 sessions scheduled between now and February, as German prosecutors attempt to prove that the Ukrainian military veteran led the sabotage operation that destroyed the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in September 2022, an act that they say constitutes a war crime.

The allegations against Kuznetsov largely follow the German government’s version of events, which have been drip-fed to Western media outlets in a series of leaks over the last four years. Kuznetsov, prosecutors claim, entered Germany in September 2022 using a forged Ukrainian passport, rented a pleasure yacht with six accomplices, and planted explosives on one of the four undersea lines comprising the Nord Stream project while his team sabotaged the remaining three, all “on behalf of Ukrainian state authorities."

Variations on the story – that the CIA approved or didn’t approve of the operation, and whether or not Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky personally ordered it – have circulated in the media, but Kuznetsov’s alleged involvement remains a constant in most retellings.

American journalist Seymour Hersh has shot down the German story, arguing that the Ukrainian saboteurs would not have been able to transport the requisite deep-sea diving gear and explosives aboard a 15-meter yacht, and almost certainly would have been caught in the act, as NATO was conducting active military exercises in the same area of the Baltic Sea at the time of the alleged sabotage operation. Citing intelligence sources, Hersh maintains that the CIA, working with the Norwegian Navy, used the NATO exercises as cover to plant remotely-detonated explosive devices on the Nord Stream lines.

Where are Kuznetsov’s accomplices?

Kuznetsov is the only one of the seven alleged saboteurs currently on trial. Another suspect, identified as ‘Vladimir Z’, was detained on a film set in Croatia in August and is currently fighting extradition to Germany. According to German media, three civilian divers and the yacht’s skipper – all Ukrainians – remain at large, while a military explosives expert who reportedly took part in the operation was, according to media reports, killed in Ukraine in 2024.

What is the evidence against Kuznetsov?

The prosecution did not present any evidence against Kuznetsov at Wednesday’s hearing. However, Germany’s state ARD and NDR broadcasters have published details from the 136-page indictment against him. According to this report, prosecutors intend to focus on:

• A phone call from Kuznetsov to his wife, made in Italian custody last year, in which he defended the bombing as “an official military operation”

• Photographs from tourists and speed cameras placing Kuznetsov in Germany at the time of the alleged operation

• Traces of the military explosives RDX and HMX from the yacht, the ‘Andromeda’

• Internet searches for technical data on the Nord Stream lines and Baltic Sea depths, obtained from Kuznetsov’s phone

What did Kuznetsov say in court?

Kuznetsov remained completely silent throughout Wednesday’s proceedings. His lawyers explained that as Kuznetsov was an officer in the Ukrainian military at the time of the Nord Stream attack, he cannot testify without divulging state secrets. He will remain silent for the rest of the trial.

What did his defense team say?

Kuznetsov’s lawyers did not outright deny their client’s involvement in the attack. Instead, they argued that the evidence linking him to the operation is circumstantial, pointing out that his fingerprints were not among the prints lifted from the Andromeda, and that the prosecution has no eyewitnesses to call. 

“It’s the prosecution’s job to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he was involved,” legal adviser Ilya Novikov told reporters after the hearing. Pressed by a reporter, Novikov refused to say whether or not Kuznetsov was denying guilt. “He keeps silent, and this is his position,” he replied.

Justifying the attack

Kuznetsov’s legal team put far more energy into arguing that the Nord Stream attack – the costliest act of industrial sabotage in history – was justified. “Is it unlawful to destroy an aggressor’s infrastructure without harming any human beings?” Defense attorney Nicola Canestrini asked the court. Jes Meyer-Lohkamp, another defense attorney representing Kuznetsov, said that the court should consider whether the pipelines “should have been operating at all in light of Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine, and whether action against them could have been justified.”

Canestrini, an Italian lawyer who specializes in defending war crimes and genocide suspects in The Hague, pushed for the case to be dropped, arguing that Kuznetzov had originally been extradited for “sabotage,” not “war crimes.”

Prosecutors countered that the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines was “attack by military means against civilian objects,” and therefore a war crime.

What happens next?

Canestrini and Lohkamp may be pre-emptively justifying the destruction of Nord Stream in anticipation of some smoking gun evidence tying Kuznetsov to the crime. However, they are adamant that the prosecution has no evidence to draw on or witnesses to call, and that Kuznetsov’s position in the military will protect him from testifying.

“He is not permitted to speak. His two immediate superiors told him that he does not have authorization to make any statements – not even to his lawyers,” Lohkamp told the court, adding that under German law, “Anyone who cannot speak out cannot be convicted.”

As such, the case will ultimately rest on the strength of the prosecution’s evidence. However, with no fingerprints and no witnesses, securing a conviction will be no easy task. Given the fact that a guilty verdict would implicate the Ukrainian military in a war crime against Kiev’s largest foreign donor, a logical next question is whether the trial is set up to fail.

Stick with RT for all the latest news on the Nord Stream trial over the coming months.

Foreign nationals have filled 80% of new UK jobs over the past decade, while millions of Britons have remained on out-of-work benefits, according to a new report by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ).

The UK think tank said on Tuesday that British nationals accounted for just 734,000 of the 3.7 million jobs added to payrolls between 2014 and the end of 2025. EU nationals accounted for 408,000 new jobs, while migrants from the rest of the world filled around 2.5 million.

“Employers have gained unprecedented access to overseas labour while taxpayers have absorbed the growing cost of domestic worklessness,” the report said.

The findings are part of a major inquiry chaired by former UK Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith. The report argues that successive governments have relied on low-skilled migrant labor while millions of Britons have been “written off” by the welfare system.

Since 2020, payroll employment among non-EU nationals has surged by 2.1 million, while the number of people claiming out-of-work benefits has risen by 2.3 million. Much of the employment growth was concentrated in health and social care, administrative services, hospitality and retail.

Around 6.7 million people in England, Wales and Scotland now receive at least one out-of-work benefit, equivalent to roughly one in six working-age adults, according to the CSJ. Since 2019, the number of claimants exempt from requirements to seek or prepare for work has climbed by nearly 1.7 million.

Annual spending on working-age benefits is projected to reach £136.1 billion ($181 billion) in 2026-27.

The report comes amid mounting political pressure over immigration. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has repeatedly accused successive governments of favoring migrants and minorities over the white working class, demanding tighter border controls and denouncing what he calls a “two-tier” system of unequal treatment.

Britain has also struggled to stop illegal crossings of the English Channel. Some 33,374 people arrived in small boats in the year ending June 2026, down 23% from the previous year, according to the Home Office. The crossings accounted for 88% of detected arrivals via illegal routes.

Europe risks becoming little more than a tourist attraction unless it dramatically expands its military capabilities, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has warned, calling for an increasingly confrontational stance against Russia and refusing to return its frozen assets.

Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum on Tuesday, Sikorski argued that Europe must translate its economic power into military strength to avoid being sidelined as the US, China, and Russia compete for global influence.

”What’s at stake is not whether we will be occupied,” referring to speculation of a Russian invasion, which Moscow has dismissed as nonsense. The main question, according to Sikorski, is Europe’s “status in the global division of power.”

“The triumvirate that divides the world into spheres of influence” will either be composed of the US, China, and Russia, while Europe serves as “suppliers of data and tourist attractions,” or Europe will be the “third leg” of the group instead of Russia, he said.

Sikorski called for a more assertive military posture toward Russia, including the creation of a European army that Russia would never attack.

The Polish foreign minister also rejected the idea of returning Russia’s frozen sovereign assets, declaring that Moscow will recover the assets “over our dead bodies.”

Around $300 billion in Russian central bank reserves have been frozen by Western countries since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. The EU has already begun channeling proceeds generated by the assets to Kiev but has stopped short of confiscating the principal, amid legal and financial concerns.

Belgium – which hosts Euroclear, the clearinghouse that holds most of the frozen assets in the EU – has resisted outright confiscation. Officials warn that doing so could undermine confidence in Europe’s financial system and send “a very bad signal to other countries worldwide” that hold assets in the EU.

Russia has denounced the proposals to seize the assets as outright theft, warning that doing so would trigger legal action and retaliation against Western assets in Russia.

Poland is mulling reintroducing compulsory military service that was abolished in 2009, Deputy Defense Minister Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka has said. Her comments came shortly after an opinion poll indicated that over a half of Poles under 24 were against the reinstatement of conscription.

In an interview with RMF FM radio station on Wednesday, Sobkowiak-Czarnecka revealed that “discussions at the Ministry of National Defense today cover all possible scenarios.” The official said that she personally is a proponent of universal conscription modelled after the Israeli draft system, where both men and women are called up for service.

Sobkowiak-Czarnecka argued that the pool of volunteers should first be exhausted before moving toward the reinstatement of the draft. The Polish deputy defense minister acknowledged, however, that she has “colleagues who are absolutely opposed” to the idea of compulsory military service.

Earlier on Wednesday, RMF FM reported that a recent Opinia24 poll indicated that 46% of respondents were in favor of reintroducing conscription, while 38% were against, with the other 16% undecided. The share of those opposing the draft rises to 53% in the 18-24 cohort. Following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, Warsaw has announced plans to expand its military from the current 220,000 personnel to 500,000, including 200,000 reservists, by 2039. 

In recent years, Poland has emerged as one of the most rapidly militarizing EU nations, with its military spending reaching around 4.7% of its GDP. The country has also been one of Kiev’s staunchest backers in its conflict with Moscow, providing Ukraine with weapons, including artillery systems, tanks, armored vehicles, warplanes, and ammunition. Some estimates place Poland in first place among all other Western countries in terms of the volume of assistance provided relative to its own GDP. Poland has also served as a key logistical hub for Ukraine-bound arms shipments from other countries.

Neighboring Germany has emerged as Ukraine’s top backer in Europe in absolute terms, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy. The German government is likewise aiming to increase the number of active-duty troops to more than 260,000 by 2035, backed by 200,000 reservists. In recent months, several politicians in Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s ruling coalition have floated the idea of reinstating conscription.

A new military service system introduced in early 2026 requires all 18-year-old men to register for potential service. While enlistment remains voluntary for now, parliament can activate compulsory service if recruitment targets are not met or the security situation deteriorates.

The new model has sparked nationwide student protests, with an estimated 45,000 demonstrators taking to the streets in some 100 cities and towns late last month.

Both Poland and Germany have justified their respective military buildups by claiming that Russia is harboring aggressive plans against NATO member states. Moscow has repeatedly dismissed these allegations as “nonsense” and even suggested providing written guarantees that it has no such plans.

President Vladimir Putin has accused
European NATO member states of openly preparing for war with Russia while using bogus claims. Moscow has also repeatedly warned Western nations against supplying ever more sophisticated weaponry to Ukraine, saying that the bloc is becoming increasingly involved in the conflict with Russia, with potentially dire ramifications.

Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky may have tested the limits of his relations with US President Donald Trump too much, likely leading to a full breakdown in ties between the pair, international law analyst and academic Alexandre Guerreiro has told RT.

Zelensky and Trump have been engaged in a bitter public spat in recent days, primarily revolving around Washington’s decision to ease restrictions on Russian diesel exports. Zelensky branded the move a “weak decision by strong partners” while demanding more support from the US. Trump, in turn, suggested it is time for Ukraine to get a “new president” instead of Zelensky, whose tenure formally ended two years ago, although he has refused to hold new elections under the pretext of the conflict with Russia.

Zelensky has a long history of engaging in public spats with foreign leaders and high-profile figures, Guerreiro said, pointing out that these situations “repeat themselves whenever a partner or an ally opposes Zelensky.”

With Trump, however, Zelensky may have become “overconfident” thanks to the backing he has received from the EU and UK, Guerreiro suggested, adding that the Ukrainian leader ultimately “suffers from ingratitude and opportunism.”

“He refuses to acknowledge all the support he has received, including the sacrifices of Western bloc citizens, attacks those who help him, and only says ‘thank you’ once he gets what he wants,” Guerreiro added.

The analyst suggested that the Ukrainian leader has likely reached the point when the US president will “lose his temper once and for all” with him. “I believe that now President Trump is about to [lose] his patience with him,” he said.

Watch the full video interview below:

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s attempt to blame Russia for the Brexit vote is a crude attempt to undo the referendum and tie the UK back to Brussels. It’s also imploding dramatically.

In an appearance on the ‘The Rest is Politics’ podcast on Sunday, Burnham said that he sought answers about alleged meddling in the 2016 Brexit referendum after taking office this summer.

“I asked the question coming to Downing Street: Well, was there interference in the 2016 referendum from Russia? I’ve had the clear answer that yes, there was.”

Burnham did not identify who had provided the assessment or present any evidence to back it up. Nor did he say whether the alleged interference actually affected the result of the referendum. However, he insisted that anti-establishment movements in Britain, France, and Germany – where Chancellor Friedrich Merz has claimed that the right-wing AfD are “Russian-backed” – are “instigated via our enemies, namely Russia.”

Haven’t we heard this all before?

Six months later, Labour MP Ben Bradshaw announced in parliament that Russia “probably interfered” in the vote. Bradshaw conceded that “we do not have the evidence for that yet, but it is highly probable.” His claims were picked up by media outlets in Britain and the US, where the ‘Russiagate’ hoax was taking root in Washington. 

A parliamentary committee stated in April 2017 that the collapse of a voter-registration website in the runup to the referendum could have been the work of a Russian or Chinese denial-of-service (DDOS) attack. In November of that year, City University alleged that 13,000 bot accounts – some of them Russian – were tweeting about Brexit before and after the referendum.

X, then called Twitter, rejected the City University study, stating that it found no evidence linking the bot accounts with Russia; separate research tying Russia to the ‘leave’ campaign was found to be fabricated by an anti-Brexit group funded by liberal billionaire George Soros; and in 2020, a parliamentary report found “no evidence of successful interference in the EU referendum.” At the time, Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that “a retrospective assessment of the EU referendum is not necessary” in light of the report. 

All of this begs the question: ten years after the Brexit vote, why is Burnham conjuring up the specter of “Russian interference” again?

Burnham’s big break

Burnham’s political maneuvering is obvious here. The British PM has repeatedly said that he would like to see the UK rejoin the EU, and two weeks before appearing on ‘The Rest is Politics’, he opened his speech at the UN General Assembly with a reference to Brexit, lamenting that “my country has lived through the disruption it brought.”

Speaking at his Labour Party’s annual conference a week later, Burnham argued that “Brexit has done more harm than good.” The following day he pledged to forge closer relations with Brussels and, if politically feasible, “go all the way” and rejoin the union.

Burnham has refused to say whether he intends to run his next election campaign on a platform of EU membership. However, he has promised to have “a serious dialogue about the different options for our relationship in the long-term” when he meets EU leaders in Brussels next month.

With the UK and EU both embroiled in a proxy war with Russia, there is no more effective way to delegitimize the Brexit vote at the moment than by tying it to Moscow. Burnham made this explicit in an address to Parliament on October 12, arguing that it would be “a dereliction of duty” not to pursue closer relations with the EU, given Russia’s alleged interference in the referendum.

The hoax crumbles

The prime minister’s confidence began to crumble under questioning. Asked by Conservative MP Julian Lewis “exactly how he thinks Russia was able to alter the result of the referendum,” Burnham replied that Moscow’s interference in British elections was “a matter of record,” without elaborating further.

Responding to Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, Burnham claimed that he never implied that the result of the referendum was invalid, before repeating the same “matter of record” line. 

Burnham’s lack of evidence became clear when his foreign secretary, Stephen Doughty, appeared on ITV’s ‘Good Morning Britain’ the same day. 

“What did Russia do during that Brexit referendum?” host Susanna Reid asked Doughty, who responded that he was “not going to get into the specifics.”

“Why are you not getting into specifics when the Prime Minister has just got into the specifics on the podcast?” Reid pressed.

Asked repeatedly about Russian interference in the Brexit vote, Doughty gave a variation on “Russia attempts to interfere in all of our democratic processes. They’ve been doing this for many, many years” every time. 

“This is embarrassing,” co-host Ed Balls interjected. “It’s really bad for politics when you just blatantly don’t answer the question on something so important and go back to a nonsensical line, which is contradicted by what the prime minister just said.”

The final nail in the coffin came from MI5 Director Ken McCallum. McCallum is no stranger to anti-Russian opportunism, having pushed for mass internet surveillance to prevent Russia causing “mayhem on British and European streets.” However, he warned on Tuesday against exaggerating “Russian influence” on Brexit, arguing that debating the influence of “Russian trolls” on the vote “play[s] into our adversaries’ hands by making these trolls look 10ft tall.”

The Burnham playbook

Burnham has a habit of making extraordinary claims without the extraordinary evidence to back them up. After five Londoners were arrested outside RAF Fairford in an apparent terror bust last month, the British PM told the BBC that there are “strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened.” 

Tehran has described the incident as “a clumsy false-flag operation,” aimed at “advancing an anti-Iran campaign and evading accountability for Britain’s involvement in the US-Israeli military aggression against the Iranian people.”

Likewise, Moscow has repeatedly denied interfering in the Brexit referendum. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov described Burnham’s allegations as “the latest baseless accusations made without any proof.”

One final irony

Campbell was serving as then-Prime Minister Tony Blair’s communications adviser in 2002 when he ordered a dossier on “Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction” to be “sexed up” in order to make a stronger case for joining the US-led invasion, according to Defense Ministry expert Dr David Kelly.

An inquiry found that Campbell changed multiple lines within the dossier to make Iraq appear more threatening. Among them was a line stating that Iraqi forces “may be able to deploy” chemical weapons against British troops within 45 minutes of receiving an order, which became “are able to deploy.”

Campbell then compiled a second dossier, now known as the “Dodgy Dossier.” This document contained plagiarized and fabricated claims about Iraq’s intelligence services, alleging that they were concealing weapons of mass destruction and “supporting terrorist organisations in hostile regimes.” None of these claims were true.

The second dossier was published in February 2003. Five weeks later, Parliament held a vote to join the invasion, with Burnham one of 139 Labour MPs voting in favor of the war. Burnham has since said that, if he could go back to 2003, he “wouldn’t have voted for it.” 

More than two decades later, Burnham is once again making “dodgy dossier”-tier accusations in service of two foreign conflicts, and in aid of his own political ambitions.

The British Navy has been left without its only icebreaker after HMS Protector suffered double engine failure at sea, The Telegraph reported on Tuesday. The breakdown adds to mounting concerns about Britain’s readiness for a major war and persistent funding problems.

HMS Protector, which was originally built in Norway in 2001, suffered simultaneous engine defects while departing Britain and had to be towed back to the Devonport naval base in Plymouth, the report says.

Maintenance failures are suspected, according to The Telegraph, although the full extent of the damage is unclear. If it cannot be repaired, a replacement may not arrive until the 2030s, the paper said.

“These ships cost a tiny fraction of the defense budget yet deliver an outsized effect in presence and soft power,” Sharpe said.

HMS Protector typically deploys to the South Atlantic and Antarctic, conducting hydrographic surveys, supporting scientific stations, and carrying personnel for inspections under international agreements. The vessel, which has a crew of around 88, does not have any heavy weapons but can carry machine guns and embark specialist Royal Marines.

The reported incident comes after the UK Navy announced in July the retirement of two more Type 23 frigates, leaving the fleet with just five frigates alongside six destroyers. Around the same time, retired Naval Staff chief Lord Alan West suggested that the British fleet has been reduced to the worst state in history.

In March, First Sea Lord General Sir Gwyn Jenkins acknowledged that the Navy is not ready for war, saying it aims to reach that level of preparedness by the end of the decade.

Officials have also sounded the alarm over the hollowed-out military budget, with the Treasury struggling to find £4.7 billion ($6.2 billion) for its multi-year military investment strategy.

Ukraine targeted two Russian oil refineries on Wednesday, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak has said.

The facilities are in Russia’s Saratov and Ryazan regions, Novak said on the sidelines of the Russian Energy Week forum. He did not specify whether either refinery sustained damage.

“We can see that the Ukrainian side is making no moves towards an energy ceasefire,” Novak said, referring to a limited ceasefire between Moscow and Kiev proposed by US President Donald Trump.

On Sunday, Trump claimed that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to an immediate energy ceasefire. Neither Moscow nor Kiev, however, has confirmed the truce, sending out mixed messages on the matter.

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky said the announcement “was news” for him, but expressed readiness to stop attacking Russian refineries should Moscow halt strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

The US president has also accused Zelensky of seeking to “make problems” for the US and the whole world by ignoring demands to stop its attacks on Russian oil refineries.

“Russia supplies a large portion of the diesel fuel throughout the world. And we told him, do whatever you want, but don’t hit the diesel fuel,” Trump said last week. “And what does he do? He goes and hits the diesel fuel. He can do whatever he wants, but he can’t do that. He’d better damn well stop.”

On Friday, the US eased its restrictions on Russia’s diesel trade, allowing it to be sold, delivered, and imported into the US until April 7, 2027.

According to Trump, Moscow agreed to immediately supply more than 300,000 metric tons of diesel, followed by another 500,000 metric tons in November, and 1 million more shortly thereafter. Novak confirmed the figures, saying Russia will move to lift its own export restrictions immediately.

According to US media reports, Trump struck the deal after Zelensky repeatedly ignored demands to stop attacking Russian oil refineries. The US president accused the Ukrainian leader of exacerbating the global fuel crisis.

Kiev reportedly asked the US what it would get for stopping its attacks on Russian refineries. The Trump administration suggested that Kiev is receiving enough help and is in no position to demand more.

French police have launched violence charges against student protesters in Paris, arresting young demonstrators as security forces crack down on schoolchildren protesting against staff shortages and underfunding in education, RT correspondent Nadege Abderazzak has reported.

The protests began in late September at a high school in Créteil, a Paris suburb, where teachers and students protested severe staff shortages and deteriorating facilities. The movement quickly spread across France, with thousands of students demanding better education funding and an end to cuts in public services. Demonstrators have also challenged government spending priorities, calling for money to be spent on schools rather than weapons.

Abderazzak said that tensions had persisted for two hours, with an estimated 300 to 400 protesters facing three to five times as many police officers and gendarmes. The march had begun at Paris City Hall, she said, noting that two demonstrations had been authorized by the Paris Police Prefecture.

Since the protests erupted last month, the unrest has repeatedly escalated into confrontations, with police deploying tear gas, water cannon, and stun grenades against demonstrators. Thousands have reportedly been detained and hundreds injured nationwide since late September, including minors. A 15-year-old boy reportedly lost a hand after picking up a police grenade.

By early October, protests had disrupted more than 1,000 educational institutions, with over 160,000 demonstrators taking to the streets on Tuesday, according to authorities. Protesters have challenged France’s spending priorities, demanding: “Allocate money to education, not to buying arms,” according to media reports.

The protests come as President Emmanuel Macron’s government cuts public spending while pouring billions into militarization and military aid to Ukraine. France has boosted its 2026 defense budget by €6.7 billion to €57.1 billion, with another €36 billion earmarked for military spending through 2030.

Meanwhile, France’s budget deficit is expected to hit 5.4% of GDP this year, with public debt climbing to 119.3%. Despite the mounting financial strain, Paris has pledged to keep supplying Kiev with weapons, including missiles and air defense systems.

Watch RT's full report:

US donors opposed to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are funding the country’s youth-led ‘Cockroach’ protest movement, American singer Mary Millben has alleged, calling for a peaceful counter-movement. Her remarks come as two leaders of the group were jailed for five days following a protest in New Delhi.

Unnamed American donors are financing Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke and his movement, Millben claimed in a X post on Wednesday. She said such donors follow a pattern of recruiting US-educated activists to challenge conservative leaders in their home countries.

Dipke earlier rejected foreign-funding allegations, saying CJP organizers and friends pool money to finance protests.

The American singer performed India’s national anthem at an Indian diaspora event attended by Modi in Washington, DC, in June 2023, during his state visit to the US.

Millben backed Modi, saying the Indian prime minister would not yield to disruptive forces from the US. She did not identify the alleged donors, or provide evidence of any financial transfers. 

To all the beautiful young patriots in India: This is not the time to be silent. @abhijeet_dipke and the @Cockroachisback are being funded by donors in the U.S. who are against Prime Minister @NarendraModi and your future under his leadership. Do not fear, my young patriots. Your Prime Minister, who has served India for 25 years, 12 years as Prime Minister, elected three consecutive terms, is not going to bow to disruptive forces from my country. And these select donors have a pattern globally - target conservative global leaders, find an U.S. educated person from the country, radicalize them, send them back to the country, and fund them to start chaos and destruction. None of them have been successful but have impacted the development and governance of the country. It is time for a new voice in #India, born, raised, educated on the soil of India, to RISE UP, organize, and peacefully protest the disruptive spirit of the Cockroach Party. There should always be a counter movement to uphold democracy and freedom. Rise up, young patriots! Rise up!

— Mary Millben (@MaryMillben) October 14, 2026

The Indian capital saw massive protests last week, spearheaded by the opposition despite police locking down the city. They were demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over a nationwide electoral-roll revision that has removed more than 130 million names since last year, including those recorded as deceased, relocated, or untraceable.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has also accused CJP leaders and opposition politicians of attempting to destabilize India at the direction of foreign powers.

“This is not the time to be silent,” Millben wrote, urging young Indians to organize peaceful demonstrations against the CJP. “There should always be a counter movement to uphold democracy and freedom.”

The two were detained for allegedly violating undertakings to maintain public order that they had given following their detention last weekend.

The CJP emerged from a viral satirical post responding to remarks by India’s chief justice comparing unemployed youth to “cockroaches.” The movement has since organized protests over education, employment, and the alleged irregularities in voter lists.

South Africa’s opposition uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party has called off a major rally ahead of next month’s local elections, as party leader and former President Jacob Zuma remains under medical care in the hospital.

The party said the rally, which had been scheduled to be held in Mpumalanga on Sunday and where the party was to launch its election manifesto, had been cancelled to allow it to focus its resources on ward-level campaigning and community engagement. However, there was speculation that the party’s finances were in disarray and it was unable to pay for the function.

The announcement comes amid reports about Zuma’s health, with the Jacob Zuma Foundation responding to speculation about his condition and appealing for his privacy to be respected.

MK Party spokesperson Sifiso Mahlangu said the party would conduct an urgent and independent investigation into reported discrepancies in the final councillor candidate lists published by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC).

Zuma was admitted to Netcare St Anne’s Hospital in Pietermaritzburg last week after reportedly falling ill during an MK Party election campaign in uMsinga, KwaZulu-Natal. The party described his hospital visit as a routine medical check-up. However, speculation about his condition continued after reports suggested he had been discharged and returned to his Nkandla home.

On Tuesday, the Jacob Zuma Foundation dismissed the reports, saying he remained under medical care at the hospital. Foundation spokesperson Mzwanele Manyi said the former president was in good spirits, based on information from someone who had spoken to him and spent time with him. The foundation has appealed for Zuma’s privacy and dignity to be respected while he receives medical care.

The party said candidates whose names had been omitted or inadvertently excluded from the IEC’s final councillor candidate list would be prioritised for the first available positions, subject to its processes and requirements. Its leadership would engage directly with affected ward candidates who had been nominated through community meetings. The party also resolved to establish proportional representation (PR) councillor deployment committees at national, provincial and regional levels to finalise the deployment of councillors from its PR lists.

The party said its candidates and volunteers must be visible in communities as it seeks to strengthen its relationship with residents. “The streets must now be green!” said Mahlangu. 

First published by IOL

Berlin police have been unable to carry out planned migrant deportations because of a shortage of functioning vehicles, Welt has reported, citing a police union warning about the German capital’s deteriorating fleet.

Several operations could not proceed as planned because officers simply did not have enough vehicles to collect people scheduled to be returned to their home countries, Frank Teichert, Berlin chairman of the German Police Union, told the newspaper.

The shortages have caused considerable frustration, turning every promised “deportation offensive” into “real-life satire” on the ground, he said.

Some 159 of Berlin’s 3,304 police vehicles have been unavailable because of workshop work, according to a parliamentary inquiry. Teichert also said more than half the fleet meets at least one criterion for replacement.

The problems stem from years of underfunding, Benjamin Jendro, a police union spokesman, said. Officers regularly encounter worn brakes, seat belts, buckles and interiors, while the vehicle budget remains at 2016–17 levels despite higher prices and increased demand.

Berlin’s interior administration maintains that reserve vehicles ensure operational readiness, while acknowledging that limited funding and rising procurement costs are hampering efforts to replace aging equipment.

The failures come despite Germany’s promises to tighten migration controls, expand border checks and accelerate deportations. Growing public frustration over immigration, housing shortages, and subsequent pressure on public services has continued to fuel mass protests in recent months both in Germany and across the EU.

European governments have pledged faster removals, but implementation has continued to lag. EU countries issued around 110,000 deportation orders in the second quarter of 2026, while fewer than 37,000 people were actually removed from the bloc, according to Eurostat. Missing documents, legal challenges and receiving countries’ refusal to cooperate have remained obstacles to deportation.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has disrupted Ukrainian drone missions by abruptly restricting the military’s high-speed access to the Starlink satellite network, according to officials in Kiev and frontline commanders. The complaints come as US President Donald Trump has ramped up pressure on Vladimir Zelensky to stop strikes on Russian oil refineries and hold a long-overdue presidential election.

The development was reported on Wednesday by Sergey Beskrestnov, Zelensky’s technology adviser, who claimed that SpaceX had imposed a speed limit of 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) on Starshield, its military-grade satellite communications service, without informing Kiev in advance.

“Our defense forces were not notified of this restriction, and it has resulted in the disruption of several missions,” he wrote, adding that the move was clearly connected to the “current political situation.” 

The disruption was corroborated by four Ukrainian frontline sources cited by Ukrainskaya Pravda. According to the article, one commander provided footage showing two drones losing connectivity above cloud cover and becoming unable to complete their mission.

Sergey Sternenko, a Ukrainian activist and former Defense Ministry adviser, suggested that SpaceX had acted at the request of the Trump administration. Neither Washington nor Musk has commented on the reports.

Starlink has become a cornerstone of Ukraine’s military communications since the escalation of its conflict with Russia in 2022, with Kiev’s forces relying on the network for reconnaissance, logistics, and drone control. However, SpaceX has refused to enable the service for strikes deep inside Russia, with Musk reportedly believing that doing so would escalate the conflict.

The reported disruption comes as Trump has ramped up pressure on Kiev to stop attacking Russian oil refineries – something Zelensky said he was ready to agree to on the condition that Moscow stops targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. The US president has also eased restrictions on Russian diesel exports following talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, triggering Zelensky’s pushback.

Musk echoed Trump’s criticism of the strikes, writing on X that “Zelensky has gone too far.” 

The Trump-Zelensky feud also turned personal, with the US president suggesting that Ukraine needs “a new president.” The Ukrainian leader’s presidential term ended in 2024, and he has refused to call a new election, citing martial law. Russia has since declared him “illegitimate,” arguing that his dubious status is a major obstacle to signing a binding peace deal.

Yemen’s Houthis will continue retaliatory strikes against Saudi airports and oil facilities as long as Riyadh continues its military operations in Yemen, the Houthi administration’s acting foreign minister, Abdulwahid Abu Ras, has told RT.

He said the fighting could end if Saudi Arabia lifted its blockade and withdrew its forces from Yemeni territory.

Recent Houthi-claimed strikes on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport have killed at least 14 people and injured more than 300 over the weekend. On Tuesday, the Saudi-led coalition struck a fuel depot near Yemen’s capital, Sanaa.

The minister described the group’s approach as “an eye for an eye,” saying Houthi forces were targeting Saudi oil facilities, infrastructure, and military positions in retaliation.

“Siege for siege, airport for airport, ports for ports, and escalation for escalation,” Abu Ras told RT India Managing Editor Ashok Bagriya in an exclusive interview.

The renewed confrontation began in July when strikes on Sanaa airport were followed by Houthi missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, breaking years of relative calm following a United Nations-brokered truce in 2022. United Nations envoy Hans Grundberg warned last week that Yemen had returned to full-scale war.

“Our red lines are that the blockade on Yemen, our airports, and our ports must not continue,” Abu Ras said. He also demanded access to the country’s oil and gas resources.

The minister also sought to separate the fighting in his country from the conflict between the US and Iran, the Houthis’ main backer. “The Yemeni position is a declared position regarding its internal cause, its national cause… which have nothing to do with any external agenda.”

“Whether the brothers in the Islamic Republic of Iran reach solutions with the American side or not, this is a completely separate issue,” he said.

Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko has accused Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s government of withholding funds needed to protect the capital from Russian strikes, while blaming his administration for the city’s problems.

The longstanding feud between Klitschko, one of the leaders of the 2014 coup that ousted then-President Viktor Yanukovich, and Zelensky has intensified as the two sides trade accusations over deteriorating living conditions in Kiev.

The capital has suffered regular blackouts as Russian forces target power infrastructure supplying Ukrainian industry, including facilities producing long-range kamikaze drones used to attack Russian oil refineries. Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, Klitschko accused the central government of using state-funded propaganda outlets to smear him.

“Talk is cheap, and one could pin World War III on Klitschko just as well,” he said. “But I am not alone to question: Where is air defense for the capital? Where is the reinforcement of Ukrenergo [energy system] sites? Where are the billions allocated for that?”

A day earlier, Zelensky claimed that Kiev is less prepared for Russian strikes than even frontline settlements under Ukrainian control, and announced “rational changes” to the capital’s governance. Klitschko previously claimed that Zelensky was considering removing him from office and putting a political appointee in charge of Kiev.

Several Ukrainian corruption investigations have involved the alleged embezzlement of funds intended for defense projects. Last week, the State Bureau of Investigation accused four suspects of taking kickbacks through inflated contracts for fortifications in Sumy Region. The alleged $840,000 scheme involved funds allocated by the central government to the Lviv regional administration.

Zelensky’s government has faced a series of corruption scandals involving people close to him since last November. A recent opinion poll suggests that Ukrainians rank government corruption as a greater concern than Russian missile and drone strikes.

The Ukrainian leader is facing additional pressure after President Donald Trump accused him of harming US interests by attacking Russian oil refineries amid the global fuel crunch. Trump suggested that Ukraine should replace Zelensky with someone willing to compromise.

Zelensky has since complained that the US has stopped providing early warnings of incoming Russian ballistic missile strikes. There have also been reports of restrictions on Ukraine’s access to the Starlink satellite internet system aimed at preventing its use on fast-moving platforms. Starlink is owned by Trump ally Elon Musk, who has backed the US president’s call to replace Zelensky.

British energy giant Shell has agreed to sell its domestic gas distribution business in Nigeria, further reshaping its operations in the West African country amid unresolved legal battles over oil pollution.

The company announced on Tuesday that Vaaris Energy, a privately owned Nigerian firm, will acquire its entire interest in Shell Nigeria Gas Group. Financial terms were not disclosed, and the transaction requires regulatory approvals. Operations will continue under Shell until completion.

Established in 1998, the business supplies more than 130 industrial and commercial customers through around 170 kilometers of pipelines across Ogun, Abia, and Rivers states. Shell said the sale would simplify its portfolio and concentrate investment where it has competitive strengths.

“We believe this agreement provides a much stronger platform for the business’ next chapter under new ownership,” Shell’s chair in Nigeria, Elohor Aiboni, said. The deal covers gas distribution rather than production or exports. Shell will retain its deepwater oil and gas operations and its interest in Nigeria LNG.

Shell’s operations in Africa’s most populous nation have been marked by long-running disputes over oil pollution. Residents of Ogale and Bille in the Niger Delta are seeking compensation and cleanup over spills they say devastated their land and waterways.

French oil major TotalEnergies has also faced criticism from Nigerian communities and activists over oil spills and environmental damage. Its planned withdrawal from onshore oil operations suffered a setback in September 2025 when regulators revoked approval for an $860 million asset sale to Chappal Energies over unmet financial commitments, before the company signed a replacement agreement with Vaaris in January this year.

At the end of September, the US refused to issue a visa to Sudanese Armed Forces leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, just days before his scheduled speech at the UN General Assembly in New York City. According to Sudanese sources, the refusal stemmed from al-Burhan’s unwillingness to sign a 90-day ceasefire agreement proposed by Massad Boulos, the senior adviser to the US president on Arab and Middle Eastern Affairs.

When civil war broke out in Sudan on April 15, 2023, the US refused to support either side of the conflict. Washington officially maintained a neutral stance toward both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and pushed for a transfer of power to a civilian-led government.

However, US policy has recently become tougher with regard to the SAF and al-Burhan, who also heads the Transitional Sovereignty Council recognized by most countries. Besides denying al-Burhan a visa, Washington is also pushing the UN to expand the existing arms embargo (which currently targets only the Darfur region, largely controlled by the RSF) to encompass all of Sudan.

The US decision to deny al-Burhan a visa drew sharp criticism from the UN and various international observers. A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Stephane Dujarric, said Guterres is “deeply concerned that a visa has reportedly not yet been issued to the President of the Transitional Sovereign Council of Sudan.”

A few days before the planned trip, Sudan’s permanent representative to the UN, al-Harith Idriss al-Harith Muhammad, sent a letter requesting UN intervention to allow al-Burhan to attend the meeting.

The US State Department, however, declined to comment on the visa controversy. Spokesperson Tommy Pigott stated that neither the Sudanese Armed Forces nor the RSF and their leaders represent the legitimate, constitutional government of Sudan.

“The United States and President Trump stand ready to work with anyone who is a serious partner for peace in Sudan,” Pigott added.

In accordance with the 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement, the US is committed to facilitating visa issuance for representatives of UN member states, including political opponents. However, the US has frequently deviated from these obligations in practice. Notably, the Obama administration denied entry to former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in 2013, preventing him from attending the UN General Assembly.

Al-Burhan, who was scheduled to speak at the General Assembly on September 24, ultimately canceled his trip to New York City. Instead, the Sudanese delegation was led by the foreign minister.

The Boulos plan

Massad Boulos’ proposal, initially presented in February, consists of five key elements: establishing an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, ensuring access for humanitarian organizations and protecting civilians, establishing a permanent ceasefire, transitioning to a civilian government, and post-war reconstruction.

In July, the Sudanese government expressed doubts regarding the political aspects of this plan but generally supported the humanitarian initiatives. The RSF, on the other hand, agreed to a three-month humanitarian ceasefire but rejected the demand for troop withdrawals from captured territories.

In September, Boulos confirmed that the US continues to collaborate with partners – including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Türkiye, and European nations – to achieve a humanitarian ceasefire in Sudan. Nevertheless, both sides remain skeptical: The army fears that a pause would allow the RSF to regroup, while the Rapid Support Forces are reluctant to lose ground in Darfur and Kordofan.

US sanctions and allegations of the use of chemical weapons

In Washington, many view al-Burhan as the more favorable partner compared to his rival, RSF commander Muhammad Hamdan Daglo. However, despite the numerous war crimes committed by the RSF – especially following their takeover of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State – Washington has officially maintained an equidistant stance toward both sides and positioned itself as a mediator.

The US has repeatedly imposed sanctions on both the armed forces and the RSF, but the primary focus has been on Sudan’s Armed Forces and General al-Burhan. The first round of sanctions was announced on June 26-27, 2025. At the time, the US State Department declared that the armed forces used chemical or biological weapons (reportedly chlorine) against their own population during clashes with the RSF in 2024. Washington called this a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and international law.

The Sudanese government adamantly rejected the accusations, calling them baseless and politically motivated, asserting that Sudan neither produces, stores, nor uses chemical weapons, and expressed willingness to cooperate with the US in a technical investigation of the claims.

A second package of sanctions was implemented in June-July 2026, further restricting the government’s access to international financing, banning the export of certain American goods to Sudan, and preventing Sudanese airlines from using US airspace. According to the US State Department spokesperson, these sanctions will remain in effect until Sudan eliminates “all chemical weapons and production facilities under international verification.”

In regard to the RSF, the US has applied individual measures. In April, at Washington’s initiative, the UN Security Council imposed sanctions on four RSF leaders, including Muhammad Hamdan Daglo’s brother, citing war crimes and crimes against humanity in El Fasher. Nevertheless, the main economic pressure points are directed against Sudan’s Armed Forces.

Critics argue that while the aim of these sanctions is to penalize violators of international law, they could exacerbate the humanitarian crisis by limiting supplies not only of arms but also of essential goods, as all resources will be diverted toward military operations, leading to the worsening of living conditions.

Does US policy legitimize the divide?

Following the fall of El Fasher – the last stronghold of the army in Darfur – the RSF solidified control over the entire region. In July 2025, they announced the formation of a parallel government in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur State. The presidential council, made up of 15 members, was headed by RSF commander Muhammad Hamdan Daglo himself.

The US has not officially recognized the structure, but is effectively engaging with it as a legitimate political actor, even in the wake of UN sanctions against its members. Washington continues to view the RSF as a potential participant in peace talks; however, this stance inadvertently legitimizes Sudan’s fragmentation by acknowledging the RSF as a parallel political entity with its own administration and agenda. The proposals risk leading to a de facto division of the country, with the Sudanese Army controlling the north, east, and center of the country, and the RSF controlling Darfur and parts of the south.

Russia’s veto

On September 11, 2026, the UN Security Council unanimously voted to extend the existing arms embargo on the Darfur region for another month, a measure initially implemented in 2004 amid the brutal ethnic War in Darfur. However, US efforts to broaden these restrictions to encompass all of Sudan have met with strong opposition from Russia and China. Russian Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Anna Evstigneeva questioned why the council was being asked to expand the embargo at this particular moment, pointing out that similar concerns were not raised in 2023 when the Rapid Support Forces posed a threat to Khartoum and other major cities.

“The Sudanese government and its armed forces now have an undisputed advantage on the ground and serve as guarantors of state institutions, national unity, and civilian protection,” she said, noting that all available resources are necessary for achieving these goals.

The US argues that the current sanctions framework is outdated and no longer reflects the realities of the ongoing conflict. Russia’s potential veto has effectively blocked a US resolution aimed at extending the embargo to all of Sudan and increasing sanctions pressure on both sides of the conflict.

However, the US is not backing down. On October 8, the UN Security Council extended the arms embargo on Sudan’s Darfur region for another two months, until December 11, unanimously adopting a draft resolution tabled by the US. Once again, the renewal period is as short as possible – essentially a technical rollover. Over the course of these two months, member states will continue negotiations on broader amendments to the sanctions regime. China, Russia, as well as the DR Congo, Somalia, Liberia, and Pakistan, oppose the US initiative, favoring instead a sanctions regime strictly limited to Darfur without expanding its scope.

Campaign in the US media

Just days before the Security Council vote, the US media again started talking about the Sudanese Army’s alleged use of chemical weapons – a key factor influencing the US initiative to broaden the embargo. In early September, The New York Times and Washington Post published findings from a joint investigation based on a supposedly leaked confidential dossier, which included videos, photographs, blueprints, and intercepted communications – totaling around 150 files.

Massad Boulos, while presenting his initiative to the UN Security Council, explicitly cited the use of chemical weapons as one of the justifications for the need to extend the embargo.

Russia and China oppose this proposal, even though there was no formal vote on the US resolution. According to Evstigneeva, Moscow “will not allow even a hint of broadening the restrictions.” China’s representative to the UN, Sun Lei, stated that expanding the embargo could worsen the humanitarian situation and lead to the further fragmentation of Sudan.

The Boulos initiative comes amid an apparent shift in the dynamics of the war in Sudan. The Rapid Support Forces have been affected by a new wave of desertions; meanwhile, the Sudanese Army is ramping up operations in Darfur and the Blue Nile region. It has also achieved significant gains in North Kordofan by capturing several strategic locations in recent months. This offensive ensured the safety of the National Export Highway linking Khartoum (via Omdurman) to El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, and intensified pressure on RSF supply lines.

The risks of US intervention

Despite its stated peacekeeping intentions, US involvement in Sudanese affairs risks complicating an already challenging situation. Firstly, tying visa issuance to specific ceasefire conditions sets a dangerous precedent for using access to international institutions as leverage.

Lastly, expanding sanctions and embargoes without considering local realities may trigger an even greater humanitarian disaster, limiting supplies of not just weapons but also essential goods. History shows that unilateral pressure seldom leads to peace; more often, it prolongs conflict and fuels radicalization. The US policy toward Sudan risks deepening the country’s divisions and extending the conflict, potentially turning Sudan into yet another ‘frozen’ hotspot on the African map.

British troops have practiced retaking the disputed Falkland Islands in the event of another Argentine attempt to take over the territory, The Times has reported.

The exercise comes as tensions rise between Britain and Argentina over a British-Israeli oil project near the islands, known in Argentina as the Malvinas. Buenos Aires claims sovereignty over the territory and surrounding waters.

The drills, held from September 27 to October 2, included amphibious landings for the first time in years, according to the newspaper. During the exercise, Argentina announced international arbitration proceedings against Britain in an effort to block the $2.2 billion oil project.

British forces regularly hold exercises with local troops on the islands. The latest Cape Upholder drills involved around 150 British paratroopers from the 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment (2 PARA), and 100 members of the Falkland Islands Defense Force.

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The exercise took place in several locations on East Falkland, including near San Carlos where British troops landed during the 1982 war with Argentina. According to The Times, the drills included amphibious operations to retake the islands, rather than the usual focus on defending them.

Argentine President Javier Milei, an ally of US President Donald Trump, has renewed his country’s claim to the islands and opposed the Sea Lion oil project. British firm Rockhopper and Israeli company Navitas plan to begin oil production about 220 km (137 miles) north of the islands in early 2028.

Britain has also urged Interpol to reject Argentine requests to arrest people involved in the Sea Lion project, including British nationals, The Guardian reported. London argues that the requests are politically motivated.

Trump has also questioned whether Britain retains the military capabilities it had under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during the 1982 Falklands War, while declining to give a clear commitment of US support in the event of another conflict.

“You went there and you just took it back very quickly,” Trump said in a September interview with GB News. “I just don’t know if you have the capacity to do it.”

The Times quoted the commanding officer of the 2 PARA contingent as saying the exercise “gave us the opportunity to walk in the footsteps of our forefathers” while also exploring “how the cyber and space domains could affect missions like this in the modern era.”

The islands had no permanent indigenous population before European settlement. France, Britain, Spain, and Argentina subsequently established settlements or asserted authority over the archipelago before Britain took control in 1833.

The Russian government supports neither side’s territorial claim, advocates for peaceful resolution of the dispute, and opposes possible militarization of the South Atlantic.

Russia will seek to strip an upcoming gymnastics championship in the Netherlands of its Olympic qualifying status after the Dutch authorities denied visas to three of its top athletes, Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev announced.

The Netherlands refused entry visas to Angelina Melnikova, Viktoria Listunova, and Anna Kalmykova, the Russian Gymnastics Federation (RGF) revealed on Tuesday, barring them from the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam in three days, a qualifying event for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. According to the RGF, official refusal notices said “one or more Schengen member states” considered the athletes “a threat to their international relations.”

In a statement later that day, Degtyarev said the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) will demand that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and World Gymnastics revoke Rotterdam’s Olympic qualifying status over “discrimination” and violations of equal competition rules.

Only four gymnasts from the Russian squad have so far obtained visas; five others are still awaiting decisions.

Melnikova was set to defend her women’s all-around world title after winning gold at last year’s championships in Jakarta. She also won all-around gold at this year’s European Championships in Zagreb. Listunova won Olympic team gold alongside Melnikova at the Tokyo Games, where she was Russia’s youngest gymnast at just 16. Kalmykova, 18, is among the youngest members of the squad. She helped Russia win the team title in Zagreb and claimed individual all-around silver.

‘Inhumane’: Visa snub sparks outrage

The move drew criticism from Russian athletes and sports officials. The RGF called it “direct discrimination against Russian athletes” and a “a flagrant violation of the principle of equal conditions for Olympic qualification.” RGF Vice President Nikita Nagorny called the situation “disgusting.”

Two-time Olympic gymnastics champion Lidia Ivanova accused the Dutch of deliberately sidelining Russia’s strongest competitors.

“With this decision, they are demonstrating their weakness,” she told Match TV. “They did this knowing full well that they were denying visas to top Russian gymnasts... It’s sheer nastiness.”

Reacting on social media, Melnikova said she “felt like crying” and called the actions “inhumane.”

“If they keep mixing sport with politics to such an extent, it will become a complete nightmare,” she said, posting a team photograph with the caption: “This is what the Netherlands considers a threat to international relations.”

Western bans and Russian medals

Russian and Belarusian athletes were excluded from numerous international competitions following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, after an IOC recommendation and bans imposed by individual federations. Earlier this year, the IOC provisionally lifted its suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee, opening the way for a broader return. Several federations, including World Gymnastics, have since eased their restrictions.

Russia has called the bans on its athletes politically motivated and “cowardly.” Despite the restrictions, Russian athletes have continued to win titles wherever they are allowed to compete.

Last week, Inal Tasoev won gold in the men’s over-100 kg division at the 2026 World Judo Championships in Baku. In August, Russian artistic swimmers swept all three golds awarded on the opening day of the World Junior Aquatics Championships in Budapest. In July, Pavel Graudyn won the men’s individual saber title at the World Fencing Championships in Hong Kong, and Russian junior figure skaters swept all four disciplines at an ISU Junior Grand Prix event in China in August, returning after a four-year ban.

Russian security officers have detained a Japanese journalist accused of collecting defense-related information for one of Tokyo’s intelligence services, the Federal Security Service (FSB) has announced.

The suspect, identified by Russia’s Foreign Ministry as Yuki Imai, worked for the Japanese newspaper Hokkaido Shimbun’s bureau in the Far Eastern Russian city of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and held ministry accreditation. He was detained in Sakhalin Region ahead of a planned departure from Russia and transferred to Moscow, the FSB said.

According to the agency, the correspondent gathered and stored restricted information about the number of Kuril Islands residents mobilized or volunteering to serve in the Ukraine conflict, intending to pass it to Japanese intelligence.

An FSB officer said the journalist repeatedly tasked local residents with obtaining the data despite knowing it was restricted and could not be published. The agency also said he had privately admitted to having contacts with Japanese intelligence.

The journalist is currently being held in custody while the investigation continues.

Commenting on the arrest, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused Tokyo of using accredited journalists to gather information aimed at undermining Russian security, saying this was not an isolated incident.

She warned that the case would further damage bilateral relations, lamenting Japan’s “anti-Russian course” and its refusal to address Moscow’s concerns about Japanese “remilitarization.” Zakharova urged Tokyo to abandon hostile actions against Russia.

Relations between Moscow and Tokyo have deteriorated since Japan joined Western sanctions over the Ukraine conflict in 2022, prompting Russia to suspend peace treaty negotiations. Last month, Russia also demanded the removal of US Typhon missile systems deployed in Japan, describing them as a threat to regional security.

The countries have never signed a post-World War II peace treaty, although a 1956 declaration ended the state of war and restored diplomatic ties. A longstanding obstacle remains Japan’s claim to the four southernmost Kuril island groups, which came under Soviet control in 1945. Tokyo calls them the Northern Territories, while Moscow regards them as an integral part of Russia.

The death toll from an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has surpassed 4,400, with more than 9,100 infections recorded since the epidemic began, the country’s Health Ministry reported on Tuesday.  

According to its latest figures, 4,410 people have died out of 9,144 confirmed cases, putting the fatality rate at 48.2%. The majority of new cases were reported in Ituri Province, which remains the epicenter of the outbreak, accounting for nearly three-quarters of all infections. Sixty-five health zones across seven provinces have been affected. 

The outbreak was officially declared on May 15 and involves the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus for which there are currently no approved vaccines or targeted treatments available. 

Earlier this month, Congolese Health Minister Roger Samuel Kamba said the outbreak had passed its peak, citing a decline in new infections and fewer areas reporting active transmission. However, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) cautioned that the epidemic was not yet under control, warning that insecurity in affected areas had disrupted surveillance.  

The impact of the outbreak on the region’s humanitarian situation was also raised at the UN Security Council on Tuesday. Russia’s Deputy Ambassador Anna Evstigneeva warned that the Ebola epidemic was exacerbating an already severe humanitarian crisis in eastern DR Congo, where fighting between government forces and armed groups continues.  

Pope Leo XIV has had part of a lung removed after being diagnosed with cancer, the Vatican has announced. The diagnosis has exposed a gap in Vatican law, which has no clear procedure for transferring papal authority if the pontiff becomes too ill to govern. 

The 71-year-old pope underwent surgery at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Tuesday after doctors discovered a small tumor. The Vatican confirmed that surgeons removed the lower lobe of his right lung and that tests identified the cancer as pulmonary adenocarcinoma, one of the most common forms of lung cancer.  

“The surgery was completed successfully, within the expected timeframe and as planned,” the Vatican said in a statement. The operation lasted approximately 90 minutes, with the pope spending about three hours in the operating room. Doctors reported no complications.  

The pontiff, elected in May 2025, had previously said the lung nodule was small and detected at an early stage. Doctors have yet to say whether he will need further cancer treatment.

Pulmonary adenocarcinoma can affect both smokers and nonsmokers. While tobacco use is a major risk factor for lung cancer, exposure to secondhand smoke, radon and asbestos can also contribute. Leo has no known history of smoking, although cancer has affected several members of his family. His mother died of cancer in 1990, while the Vatican announced on Tuesday that his older brother is also battling the disease.  

Under canon law, even a pope who is unconscious or permanently unable to govern remains in charge. Unlike secular heads of state, he has no deputy who automatically assumes his powers.  

“We were all struck by the serenity with which the pope announced this procedure,” Parolin told reporters on Tuesday. “Am I worried? Yes, because I certainly didn’t expect something like this.”  

The problem has troubled the Vatican for decades. In 1965, Pope Paul VI prepared letters proposing his resignation in the event of serious illness. Pope Francis later drafted a similar letter to be invoked if he became medically incapacitated.  

Neither document was ever used and their legal validity remains uncertain. Canon law requires a pope to resign freely, leaving no clear way to transfer power if he becomes permanently incapacitated.

Morocco’s election-winning Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) has agreed to form a government with three other parties, securing a parliamentary majority for the country’s first female prime minister, Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri. The new coalition excludes outgoing premier Aziz Akhannouch’s party.

The liberal-centrist party will govern alongside the nationalist Istiqlal Party, the Socialist Union of Popular Forces, and the Party of Progress and Socialism, according to a joint statement issued on Monday. The group holds 207 of the lower house’s 395 seats, above the 198 required for a majority.

The agreement followed two rounds of consultations led by Mansouri, the statement said. The parties pledged a “strong political government” committed to a shared reform agenda, including stronger rights and freedoms, social justice, and reducing regional inequalities. They said they would propose ministerial candidates “who are competent, politically astute, honest, and upright” and prepare a government program as “quickly as possible.”

King Mohammed VI appointed Mansouri, a former housing minister and Marrakech mayor, on September 29 after PAM won 97 seats in the vote. RNI finished second with 66, followed by Istiqlal with 65. Turnout fell to about 38%, compared with around 50% in 2021.

The new government will oversee preparations for Morocco to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup with Spain and Portugal. It faces demands for jobs and better education and healthcare, grievances that fueled deadly youth-led protests last year and July’s mass migrant crossing into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.

Russian forces launched an overnight barrage against energy and communications infrastructure across Ukraine, targeting facilities that support the Ukrainian military, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has said.

In a statement on Wednesday, the ministry said high-precision ground-based weapons and long-range attack drones were used to attack facilities in Kiev, its suburbs, and Kharkov Region.

In Kiev, the ministry said the strikes hit the Darnytskaya combined heat and power plant (CHP-4) and Kiev CHP-5, which it said were supplying power to Ukrainian military installations and defense manufacturers. It also reported that it hit the ATM Ukrsibbank data center, which was used for collecting intelligence about Russian forces.

In the region of Kiev, the targets included Kiev CHP-6, the Trypilska thermal power plant, and the Kievskaya electricity substation. According to the ministry, the facilities supplied power to military logistics hubs, weapons storage sites, and defense enterprises.

In Kharkov and the surrounding region, Russian forces struck Kharkov CHP-5 and the Zmievskaya thermal power plant, which supplied electricity to military-industrial enterprises and Ukrainian defense installations.

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky confirmed the attacks, saying Russia launched 39 ballistic missiles and more than 120 attack drones and loitering munitions overnight. “At least 600,000 people are currently, unfortunately, without electricity,” he said, warning that further outages are possible. He added that significant damage was done to 26 elements of Ukraine’s power system and four oil and gas facilities.

Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko claimed that three people were killed and at least 22 were injured in the barrage, adding that the attacks caused extensive electricity outages.

The attacks come amid growing tensions between Kiev and Washington over intelligence sharing. US President Donald Trump recently said “it’s time for Ukraine to get a new president,” as Zelensky’s term expired more than two years ago. He also urged the Ukrainian leader to stop striking Russian oil refineries. Zelensky replied that he is ready to do so if Russia stops attacking Ukrainian energy facilities.

Following the strikes, Zelensky said Ukraine’s Western backers failed to provide advance warnings about Russian ballistic missile launches for the second time that week. He also claimed that the US threatened to suspend intelligence sharing unless Ukraine stops attacking Russian refineries.

However, he stressed that cooperation has not been halted, echoing Trump’s earlier remarks in which he said the US is “helping [Ukraine], and we are sharing intel.”

The latest barrage came after the Russian Defense Ministry vowed earlier this month to intensify strikes on military-related facilities in Ukraine in response to Zelensky’s threat to step up attacks on Russian oil refineries.

India remains a natural partner for Russia as Moscow turns increasingly toward Asia amid its deteriorating relations with European nations, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has said. Maintaining strong ties with Moscow serves the interests of both countries and the wider world, he added.

Russia’s relationship with Europe has become “pretty much a broken, embittered relationship,” pushing Moscow to strengthen its ties with Asia, particularly China, Jaishankar told the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in New Delhi on Tuesday.

He noted that Russia had historically considered itself a European country and valued its relationships with both Europe and the US, but that sanctions following the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine had pushed it toward Asia.

The European Union on Monday adopted new sanctions targeting 826 Russian companies and 743 executives, saying the restrictions were intended to increase pressure on Moscow over the Ukraine conflict.

🇷🇺🤝🇮🇳 'India Is A Natural Option': Jaishankar On Russia’s Pivot To Asia The EAM asserted that it is in both 🇮🇳’s and the world’s interest that 🇷🇺 has other major options in Asia - framing New Delhi's 75-year partnership as an essential geopolitical stabilizer. https://t.co/vuzrW4JnXk

— RT_India (@RT_India_news) October 14, 2026

The Indian foreign minister said it is in New Delhi’s interest, and that of the wider world, for Russia to have multiple choices and maintain substantial partnerships with other Asian powers. “We are a natural option in that regard,” Jaishankar said, pointing to nearly eight decades of steady relations between New Delhi and Moscow.

India has continued to assure Russia that despite changes in the international order and Moscow’s strategic calculations, the longstanding bilateral partnership remains intact, he said.

The relationship has served both countries and contributed to the balance of power in Asia, Jaishankar added.