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Trump arrested in Georgia racketeering case
Former US president Donald Trump was arrested at a Georgia jail on Thursday on racketeering and conspiracy charges for trying to overturn the 2020 election results in the southern state. During a brief session lasting less than 30 minutes, the 77-year-old Trump was booked on 13 charges at Atlanta's Fulton County Jail, according to records published by the sheriff's office. Trump's height was listed by the jail as six foot three inches (1.9 meters), his weight as 215 pounds (97 kilograms) and his hair color as "Blond or Strawberry." Other defendants in the racketeering case who have surrendered to the Georgia authorities in recent days have had a mugshot taken. The billionaire has been criminally indicted four times since April, setting the stage for a year of unprecedented drama as he tries to juggle multiple court appearances and another White House campaign. In posts on his Truth Social platform shortly before leaving his New Jersey golf club for the flight to Atlanta, Trump said he was being arrested for "having the audacity to challenge a RIGGED & STOLLEN (sic) ELECTION." "This is yet another SAD DAY IN AMERICA!" he added. Trump was able to dodge having a mugshot taken during his previous arrests this year: in New York on charges of paying hush money to a porn star, in Florida for mishandling top secret government documents, and in Washington on charges of conspiring to upend his 2020 election loss to Democrat Joe Biden. But Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said standard procedure in Georgia is to take a defendant's photograph before they are released on bond -- set at $200,000 in Trump's case. The arrest comes one day after Trump spurned a televised debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, featuring eight of his rivals for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination -- all of whom lag well behind him in the polls. He still stole the spotlight, though, with all but two of the candidates saying they would support him as the party's nominee even if he were a convicted felon. During a pre-recorded interview with former Fox News talk show host Tucker Carlson -- which aired on social media at the same time as the debate -- Trump dismissed the criminal cases filed against him as "nonsense." Trump said the Justice Department had been "weaponized" under Biden to hamstring his White House bid. Court dates in election race A tight security perimeter was set up for Trump's booking at the Fulton County Jail, which is under investigation for a slew of inmate deaths and deplorable conditions. Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who filed the sweeping racketeering case, had set a deadline of noon (1600 GMT) on Friday for Trump and the other 18 defendants to surrender. Trump and 11 others have turned themselves in so far. Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows surrendered on Thursday and was released on $100,000 bond. Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, who served as Trump's personal lawyer when he was in the White House and vigorously pushed the false claims that Trump had won the 2020 election, was booked and released on Wednesday. John Eastman, a conservative lawyer who is accused of drawing up a scheme to submit a false slate of Trump electors to Congress from Georgia instead of the legitimate Biden ones, has also been booked and released. A few dozen supporters of the former Republican president gathered outside the jail, including Sharon Anderson who spent the night in her car. "I think this is a political persecution and now that's turned into a political prosecution," Anderson told AFP. Trump is the first US president in history to face criminal charges. His various trials, if they take place next year, may coincide with the Republican presidential primary season, which begins in January, and the campaign for the November 2024 White House election. Special counsel Jack Smith has proposed a January 2024 start date for Trump's trial on charges of conspiring to overturn the last election with a lie-fueled campaign that culminated in the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by his supporters. Trump's attorneys have countered with a suggested start date well after the election -- April 2026. Willis, the Georgia district attorney, initially proposed that the racketeering case begin in March next year, the same month Trump is scheduled to go on trial in New York on charges of paying hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels. On Thursday, after one of the defendants asked for a speedy trial, she proposed that it begin for all 19 in October of this year, a move met with an immediate objection from Trump's lawyers. The Florida case, in which Trump is accused of taking secret government documents as he left the White House and refusing to return them, is scheduled to begin in May. The post Trump arrested in Georgia racketeering case appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Japan begins release of water from Fukushima nuclear plant
Japan began releasing wastewater from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant on Thursday in an operation it insists is safe but has generated a fierce backlash from China. The beginning of the discharge of around 540 Olympic swimming pools' worth of water into the Pacific over several decades is a big step in decommissioning the still highly dangerous site 12 years after one of the world's worst nuclear accidents. Live video provided by plant operator TEPCO showed engineers behind computer screens and an official saying -- after a countdown -- that the "valves near the seawater transport pumps are opening." Monitors from the UN atomic watchdog, which has endorsed the plan, were due to be on site for the procedure, while TEPCO workers were scheduled to take water samples later on Thursday. Ahead of the operation, about 10 people held a protest near the site and around 100 others gathered outside TEPCO headquarters in Tokyo, AFP journalists said. "It's like dumping an atomic bomb in the ocean. Japan is the first country that was attacked with an atomic bomb in the world, and the prime minister of the country made this decision," said Kenichi Sato, 68. China's environment ministry on Thursday blasted Japan's plan as "extremely selfish and irresponsible", saying it would "track and study" the impact on its waters. - Multiple meltdowns - With around 1,000 steel containers holding the water, TEPCO has said it needs to clear space for the removal of highly dangerous radioactive nuclear fuel and rubble from the wrecked reactors. Three of the reactors at the Fukushima-Daiichi facility in northeastern Japan went into meltdown following a massive earthquake and tsunami that killed around 18,000 people in 2011. Since then, TEPCO has collected 1.34 million cubic metres of water contaminated as it cooled the wrecked reactors, along with groundwater and rain that has seeped in. TEPCO will carry out four releases of the treated water from Thursday until March 2024. The first discharge will take about 17 days. About 5 trillion becquerels -- a measure of radioactivity -- of tritium will be released this fiscal year, TEPCO added. Japan insists that all radioactive elements have been filtered out except the tritium, levels of which are harmless and lower than what is discharged by operational nuclear power plants, including in China. This is backed by most experts. "When released into the Pacific, the tritium is further diluted into a vast body of water and would quickly get to a radioactivity level which is not discernibly different from normal seawater," said Tom Scott from the University of Bristol in England. "Hence, it poses very little risk and the risk itself decreases with time due to the relatively short radioactive half-life... meaning that the amount of tritium (and hence the risk) continually reduces." - Sushi safety - Not everyone is convinced, with environmental group Greenpeace saying that the filtration process is flawed, and China and Russia suggesting the water be vaporised and released into the atmosphere instead. China has accused Japan of treating the Pacific like a "sewer", and even before the release, Beijing banned food imports from 10 out of 47 Japanese prefectures and imposed radiation checks. Hong Kong and Macau, both Chinese territories, followed suit this week. Restaurants in Beijing and Hong Kong serving sushi and sashimi are already reeling from the restrictions. "About 80 percent of the seafood products we use come from Japan," Hong Kong caterer Jasy Choi, who runs a small kitchen for takeaway Japanese food, told AFP. "If more than half of my Japan-imported ingredients are affected, then it would be difficult for me to continue to operate." Analysts said that while China may have genuine safety concerns, its strong reaction is also at least in part motivated by its economic rivalry and frosty relations with Japan. The South Korean government, which is seeking to improve ties with Japan, has not objected although many ordinary people are worried and have staged protests. Social media posts in China and South Korea have included false claims about the release including doctored images of deformed fish with claims they were linked to Fukushima. burs-stu/cwl © Agence France-Presse The post Japan begins release of water from Fukushima nuclear plant appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Japan begins release of water from Fukushima nuclear plant
Japan began releasing wastewater from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant on Thursday in an operation it insists is safe but has generated a fierce backlash from China. The beginning of the discharge of around 540 Olympic swimming pools' worth of water into the Pacific over several decades is a big step in decommissioning the still highly dangerous site 12 years after one of the world's worst nuclear accidents. Live video provided by plant operator TEPCO showed engineers behind computer screens and an official saying -- after a countdown -- that the "valves near the seawater transport pumps are opening." Monitors from the UN atomic watchdog, which has endorsed the plan, were due to be on site for the procedure, while TEPCO workers were scheduled to take water samples later on Thursday. Ahead of the operation, about 10 people held a protest near the site and around 100 others gathered outside TEPCO headquarters in Tokyo, AFP journalists said. "It's like dumping an atomic bomb in the ocean. Japan is the first country that was attacked with an atomic bomb in the world, and the prime minister of the country made this decision," said Kenichi Sato, 68. China's environment ministry on Thursday blasted Japan's plan as "extremely selfish and irresponsible", saying it would "track and study" the impact on its waters. Multiple meltdowns With around 1,000 steel containers holding the water, TEPCO has said it needs to clear space for the removal of highly dangerous radioactive nuclear fuel and rubble from the wrecked reactors. Three of the reactors at the Fukushima-Daiichi facility in northeastern Japan went into meltdown following a massive earthquake and tsunami that killed around 18,000 people in 2011. Since then, TEPCO has collected 1.34 million cubic metres of water contaminated as it cooled the wrecked reactors, along with groundwater and rain that has seeped in. TEPCO will carry out four releases of the treated water from Thursday until March 2024. The first discharge will take about 17 days. About 5 trillion becquerels -- a measure of radioactivity -- of tritium will be released this fiscal year, TEPCO added. Japan insists that all radioactive elements have been filtered out except the tritium, levels of which are harmless and lower than what is discharged by operational nuclear power plants, including in China. This is backed by most experts. "When released into the Pacific, the tritium is further diluted into a vast body of water and would quickly get to a radioactivity level which is not discernibly different from normal seawater," said Tom Scott from the University of Bristol in England. "Hence, it poses very little risk and the risk itself decreases with time due to the relatively short radioactive half-life... meaning that the amount of tritium (and hence the risk) continually reduces." Sushi safety Not everyone is convinced, with environmental group Greenpeace saying that the filtration process is flawed, and China and Russia suggesting the water be vaporised and released into the atmosphere instead. China has accused Japan of treating the Pacific like a "sewer", and even before the release, Beijing banned food imports from 10 out of 47 Japanese prefectures and imposed radiation checks. Hong Kong and Macau, both Chinese territories, followed suit this week. Restaurants in Beijing and Hong Kong serving sushi and sashimi are already reeling from the restrictions. "About 80 percent of the seafood products we use come from Japan," Hong Kong caterer Jasy Choi, who runs a small kitchen for takeaway Japanese food, told AFP. "If more than half of my Japan-imported ingredients are affected, then it would be difficult for me to continue to operate." Analysts said that while China may have genuine safety concerns, its strong reaction is also at least in part motivated by its economic rivalry and frosty relations with Japan. The South Korean government, which is seeking to improve ties with Japan, has not objected although many ordinary people are worried and have staged protests. Social media posts in China and South Korea have included false claims about the release including doctored images of deformed fish with claims they were linked to Fukushima. The post Japan begins release of water from Fukushima nuclear plant appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Chinese FM begins SE Asia tour as South China Sea tensions flare
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Singapore Thursday at the start of a three-nation regional tour, Beijing's embassy in the city-state said, as tensions flare with the Philippines in the South China Sea. His three-day trip, after returning to the post last month following the unexplained disappearance of predecessor Qin Gang, also includes Malaysia and Cambodia. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy confirmed to AFP on Thursday morning that Beijing's top diplomat had arrived in the financial hub. "China hopes to strengthen strategic communication with the three Southeast Asian countries through this visit," China's foreign ministry said when it announced the trip on Wednesday. Wang will visit until Friday and hold separate meetings with his counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Singapore's government said. His visit comes after Beijing and Manila clashed at the weekend when the Philippines accused Chinese Coast Guard vessels of blocking and firing water cannon at its boats on a resupply mission to Filipino marines stationed on a World-War-II-era ship. China has since insisted the Philippine navy vessel grounded on a reef in the Spratly Islands be removed from the hotly contested waters that have long been a flashpoint between the two. Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia and the Philippines are all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is in talks with China over a code of conduct in the sea that Beijing claims as almost entirely its own. Other ASEAN members Vietnam, Indonesia and Brunei all claim parts of the sea, too. Singapore has for decades juggled ties with China and the US as their rivalry grows across the Asia-Pacific region. Wang will travel to Malaysia on Friday where Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he will meet with Beijing's envoy in the northern state of Penang, Malaysia's Star newspaper reported. Anwar is on the campaign trail ahead of local elections on Saturday in six states. Wang will finish his trip in Cambodia, which has become one of China's strongest allies in the region under the rule of outgoing ruler Hun Sen, receiving huge sums of Chinese investment. mba/jfx/aha © Agence France-Presse The post Chinese FM begins SE Asia tour as South China Sea tensions flare appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Chinese FM begins SE Asia tour as South China Sea tensions flare
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Singapore Thursday at the start of a three-nation regional tour, Beijing's embassy in the city-state said, as tensions flare with the Philippines in the South China Sea. His three-day trip, after returning to the post last month following the unexplained disappearance of predecessor Qin Gang, also includes Malaysia and Cambodia. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy confirmed to AFP on Thursday morning that Beijing's top diplomat had arrived in the financial hub. "China hopes to strengthen strategic communication with the three Southeast Asian countries through this visit," China's foreign ministry said when it announced the trip on Wednesday. Wang will visit until Friday and hold separate meetings with his counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Singapore's government said. His visit comes after Beijing and Manila clashed at the weekend when the Philippines accused Chinese Coast Guard vessels of blocking and firing water cannon at its boats on a resupply mission to Filipino marines stationed on a World-War-II-era ship. China has since insisted the Philippine navy vessel grounded on a reef in the Spratly Islands be removed from the hotly contested waters that have long been a flashpoint between the two. Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia and the Philippines are all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is in talks with China over a code of conduct in the sea that Beijing claims as almost entirely its own. Other ASEAN members Vietnam, Indonesia and Brunei all claim parts of the sea, too. Singapore has for decades juggled ties with China and the US as their rivalry grows across the Asia-Pacific region. Wang will travel to Malaysia on Friday where Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said he will meet with Beijing's envoy in the northern state of Penang, Malaysia's Star newspaper reported. Anwar is on the campaign trail ahead of local elections on Saturday in six states. Wang will finish his trip in Cambodia, which has become one of China's strongest allies in the region under the rule of outgoing ruler Hun Sen, receiving huge sums of Chinese investment. The post Chinese FM begins SE Asia tour as South China Sea tensions flare appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Free divers find love and death in Netflix’s ‘Deepest Breath’
Early in "The Deepest Breath," an underwater drone follows free diver Alessia Zecchini as she plunges 100 meters down into the ocean's dark depths, and back up, all on a single breath. The heart-pounding, claustrophobic three-and-a-half-minute sequence is as difficult to watch as it is mesmerizing. As she ascends to the shallows, Zecchini's body begins to twitch. Rescue divers seize her and drag her up to the surface, her unconscious eyes rolling grotesquely backward as she is resuscitated. It may seem shocking, but "blacking out" from lack of oxygen is a common occurrence in free diving, an extreme sport in which athletes compete to go as deep as they can without any breathing apparatus. "You can watch all the videos in the world. It doesn't really prepare you for seeing a human being just pass out like that," said director Laura McGann, director of the Netflix documentary, out Wednesday. "It's scary to see." Through archive footage, interviews and a handful of re-enactments, McGann's film explores what drives these men and women to repeatedly risk their lives and push the limits of human endurance in pursuit of new competitive records. "Seeing a human being behave more like a seal or a dolphin in the water, with no tanks, was kind of like learning that there was a group of people in part of the world that knew how to fly," she told AFP. 'In the moment' Specifically, the film focuses on the relationship between record-breaking diver Zecchini and Stephen Keenan, a nomadic young Irishman who becomes one of the sport's top safety experts. Free divers, if not actively courting death, do not appear to fear it. Indeed, Zecchini airily claims in the movie's opening scene that she does not even think about death. Yet it quickly becomes apparent that some sort of tragedy has occurred. Neither Zecchini nor Keenan appear among the film's present-day interviews, leaving the question of their fates hanging for much of the movie -- at least, for those able to resist a quick Google search. That structure was criticized as being somewhat manipulative in early reviews at January's Sundance Film Festival, where the movie premiered, having already been acquired by Netflix days earlier. But McGann decided "really early" that her film would remain "in the moment" with its characters throughout their journeys. Death "was always going to be towards the end of the film," she said. Love and death "The Deepest Breath" is the latest documentary to explore dangerous obsessions through the lens of a love story. Last year's Oscar-nominated "Fire of Love" followed a husband-and-wife scientist couple as they risked their lives to explore the craters of erupting volcanoes. In 2019, "Free Solo" profiled death-defying climber Alex Honnold, as he juggled his obsession with climbing a notorious rockface without ropes, and his relationship with his understandably terrified girlfriend. For McGann, the relationship between Zecchini and Keenan was "a yin and a yang," like "they were each other's missing piece," even before they connected as celebrities in the small free diving community. It emphasizes that free diving is as much a mental sport as it is a physical one, requiring very specific personality types that not only stay calm, but actively enjoy being 100 meters under water, beyond rescue. "What the free diver is feeling is definitely close to the complete opposite to what we the audience are feeling," explained McGann. While viewers might struggle for breath just watching, divers speak of a "serene, quiet, peaceful silence," as they quieten their minds and reduce their heart rates to "that of a Tibetan monk." "You're almost in a meditative state," said McGann. "But you need to keep a little bit of your subconscious aware of what you're doing -- so that you remember that you have to come back up." The post Free divers find love and death in Netflix’s ‘Deepest Breath’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Recto Bank tactics
After years of being ordered by a pro-China leader to bite their tongues, Filipino security officials are now vocal and blunt about China’s devilish schemes in the West Philippine Sea or WPS. For their refreshing candor, our Coast Guard and military officials deserve our unequivocal cheers. Significant too is the fact that they’ve taken to heart one of China’s tactics of camouflaging armed Chinese maritime militia vessels as “innocent fishing boats” when our officials raised alarms last week that some 50 Chinese militia vessels were presently “swarming” Iroquois Reef, which is part of the crucial Recto Bank. “Swarming” is a threadbare Chinese scheme that’s often a prelude to China occupying South China Sea’s contested maritime features like reefs and banks. “Swarming” eventually proceeds to China constructing outright militarized artificial islands. As it is, the tactic begins with “swarming the area for a very long period. If you fail to notice them, they will increase their number eventually until they occupy the area,” says Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela. Our military and Coast Guard officials vow the necessary measures against the intruders in natural gas-rich Recto Bank (Reed Bank as it is internationally known), which is well within the Philippines’ 370-kilometer (200-nautical miles) exclusive economic zone. The Permanent Court of Arbitration or PCA ruled in 2016 that Recto Bank was within the Philippine EEZ, granting the country economic rights over the area. China refuses to recognize the ruling and claims the area as being within its territory, courtesy of a fictitious nine-dash line that’s attempting to turn a vast sea into a lake. Geographically, Iroquois Reef — locally called Del Pilar Reef — is part of the expansive Recto Bank, shorthand for a cluster of underwater banks and shoals located in an area of the shallow sea between Palawan and the Spratly Islands. Ignoring what is happening at Recto Bank is to our peril, harming not only our political interests but more importantly, our economic interests. Politically, the late President Noynoy Aquino unforgettably quipped, “Setting foot on Recto Bank is no different from setting foot on Recto Avenue.” Economically, since 1968, the Philippines, China, Taiwan and Vietnam have laid claim to Recto Bank in the hope of striking it rich by finding oil. Despite such enrichment prospects, no regional government has struck black gold anywhere in the South China Sea, however. But, says maritime expert Gregory B. Polling, “Unlike in 1968, now all the claimants know that there is no commercially viable oil and gas around the islands themselves. The exploitable basins are along the coasts and in a handful of underwater features like Reed Bank and Vanguard Bank.” Natural gas, therefore, is by far the more plentiful resource at Recto Bank. But in exploiting the natural gas, as Polling points out, “the only commercially viable way to extract it is to transport it by pipeline for use or processing on shore.” Pretty much how our Malampaya gas fields, predicted to run out in a few years, operate. Still, even if it wrests Recto Ban from us crafty China will find its adventure costly. China will need to lay an undersea pipeline across nearly 1,000 miles of difficult geography and contested waters to access the gas. “On-site liquefaction is the only other option,” says Polling. “But even if a company wanted to try, it is hard to see how it could compete with the liquefied natural gas produced more cheaply elsewhere.” So the only viable use for the natural gas at Recto Bank is for electricity generation by the nearest coastal state, which happens to be our country. “The gas from Reed Bank is no good to anyone outside the Philippines,” says Polling. So if the aggressive tactics of both the Chinese paramilitaries and Coast Guard aren’t readily explained by economics, China’s political and strategic concerns explain everything. It is in this political context that our Coast Guard’s proactive maneuver of consistently and publicly illuminating China’s aggressive tactics in the WPS works. China can’t long endure international embarrassment and condemnation. The post Recto Bank tactics appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Huge Hindu pilgrimage begins in Indian Kashmir
Thousands of Hindu devotees from across India began trekking up through Himalayan passes in Indian-administered Kashmir on Saturday, for the start of an annual pilgrimage accompanied by a major security escort. Critics accuse India's Hindu nationalist government of using the annual Amarnath procession to reinforce New Delhi's claims over the disputed Muslim-majority region. The pilgrimage is a journey to a cave shrine at an altitude of 3,900 meters (12,795 feet) that contains a holy stalagmite, believed to be an incarnation of the deity Shiva. Tens of thousands of soldiers, paramilitary troops, and police were deployed along two separate routes leading to the remote destination. "Every soldier has been briefed to ensure (the) least inconvenience to locals," army officer Amandeep Malhi told reporters on Friday. Last year, at least 16 pilgrims died in flash floods that struck near the cave, and Malhi assured pilgrims that his forces would be ready if disaster struck again. "This year, quick and effective response teams will ensure fast evacuation in case of any natural calamity," he said. The pilgrimage used to be low-key, with a few thousand pilgrims attending, until an armed insurgency against Indian rule in Kashmir erupted in 1989. Since then, the religious practice -- and accompanying security mobilization -- have grown, as has its political significance. Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and is claimed by both. Rebel groups fighting for Kashmir independence have often said that the pilgrimage is not a target but have warned in the past that if the religious event was used to establish Hindu domination of the territory they would act. In 2017, suspected rebels attacked a bus, killing 11 pilgrims. The post Huge Hindu pilgrimage begins in Indian Kashmir appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Key events in the war in Ukraine
From the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February last year to the armed rebellion Saturday of the pro-Kremlin Wagner paramilitary group, here is a timeline of the main events. The biggest attack on a European country since World War II has killed or wounded over 150,000 people, according to Western estimates. February 2022: invasion Russian President Vladimir Putin announces a "special military operation" in Ukraine on 24 February, saying he wants to demilitarise and "de-Nazify" the country as well as protect the predominantly Russian-speaking east from "genocide". A full-scale invasion starts, with missile strikes on several Ukrainian cities that sparks a refugee crisis. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stays in the capital Kyiv to lead the resistance. The West imposes unprecedented sanctions on Russia and the European Union and United States send Ukraine weapons and aid. March: Russian advances Russian forces make gains in the south, seizing the city of Kherson, close to the Moscow-annexed Crimea peninsula. Russian forces also attempt to surround Kyiv and take Ukraine's second city of Kharkiv in the northeast but meet fierce resistance. A month into the fighting, Russia withdraws from the north to focus on the eastern industrial Donbas region, partly held by Moscow-backed separatists, along with the south. April: war crimes revealed In early April, AFP discovers the bodies of at least 20 civilians lying on a single street in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha -- the first of several grisly discoveries in towns that Russian forces had occupied which spark an international outcry and war crimes investigations. May: Mariupol falls On 21 May, Russia announces the fall of the southeastern port city of Mariupol, which had been relentlessly bombed, after the last Ukrainian troops holding out at a steelworks surrender. Sweden and Finland request membership of NATO, fearing they could be future targets of Russian aggression. June: Donbas battle rages In June, Russia takes the Donbas city of Severodonetsk after one of the bloodiest battles of the war, followed soon after by the neighbouring city of Lysychansk. July: gas supplies cut On 22 July, Kyiv and Moscow sign a deal to resume grain exports from Ukraine, in a bid to relieve a food crisis aggravated by Russia's blockade of the country's ports. Russian gas giant Gazprom slashes its supply to Europe through the Nord Stream pipeline, fuelling fears of gas shortages in Europe. August: battle for Bakhmut Kyiv launches a major offensive to retake Kherson as a bitter battle begins for the eastern town of Bakhmut, spearheaded on the Russian side by the Wagner mercenary group. Wagner claims to have wrested total control of Bakhmut in May. September: annexation Ukraine retakes hundreds of towns and villages in a lightning counter-offensive around Kharkiv. Putin launches a partial draft of 300,000 reservists, sparking an exodus of young Russian men of military age. On 30 September, he formally annexes the Ukrainian regions of Lugansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. October: power supply hit On 8 October, an explosion causes major damage to a bridge linking Crimea to the Russian mainland -- a symbol of Moscow's annexation of the peninsula. Putin blames Ukrainian secret services for the attack. Russian forces retaliate with a barrage of strikes on energy infrastructure in Kyiv and other cities, leaving millions without power in what becomes its new modus operandi throughout the winter. November: retreat from Kherson On 9 November, Moscow orders its troops to retreat from Kherson in the face of advancing Ukrainian forces, marking a stunning defeat in one of the regions it annexed. Jubilant residents hail Ukrainian forces as liberators. December: Zelensky goes to Washington On 22 December, Zelensky visits Washington on his first overseas trip since the war began. He meets President Joe Biden and addresses Congress. January 2023: tanks on the way Russia suffers its biggest single loss of life since the invasion in a Ukrainian attack on a temporary base in the eastern town of Makiivka on 1 January. Moscow says 89 soldiers were killed in the hit. On 25 January, Germany finally agrees to send Ukraine some of its powerful Leopard tanks. The United States follows, announcing that it will provide 31 Abrams tanks. On 19 May, Biden authorises the delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv. In April, Ukraine also receives anti-missile Patriot defence systems from Washington. 6 June: dam destroyed A blast at the Kakhovka dam in Russian-annexed Crimea inundates vast areas of the Kherson region, forcing thousands to flee and sparking fears of an environmental disaster. Kyiv accuses Moscow of blowing up the dam on the Dnipro River, while Russia blames Ukraine. June: Ukraine counter-offensive A long-awaited Ukrainian counter-offensive begins, aided by the supply of Western arms, according to analysts. Russia brands it a failure but Kyiv says it has retaken several areas. 24 June: Wagner rebellion Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, leading a mutiny to bring down Moscow's top brass, says his fighters have captured the army HQ in Russia's Rostov-on-Don "without firing a single shot" and claims to have the support of locals. Putin warns that treason against his rule threatens Russia with civil war and accuses the Wagner boss of a "stab in the back". The post Key events in the war in Ukraine appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Singapore PM’s defamation suit against blogger begins
Singapore’s leader criticized “malicious and baseless” claims in an article linking him to a corruption scandal, as he testified on Tuesday at the start of his defamation suit against a blogger. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is suing Leong Sze Hian after the blogger shared an article on Facebook linking the premier to the money-laundering […] The post Singapore PM’s defamation suit against blogger begins appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Russia blocks renewal of UN panel monitoring North Korea sanction compliance
At the United Nations, a recent vote on renewing a panel of experts monitoring North Korea’s compliance with international sanctions has caused tension among member.....»»
PH media slam Chinese foreign ministry’s claims of manipulating WPS reports
Philippine media groups criticized the Chinese foreign ministry for suggesting that recent reports on Chinese harassment of Filipino vessels in the West Philippine Sea involved video manipulation and sensationalism to portray the Philippines as a victim. The Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (Focap) and National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) expressed offense.....»»
MLB season begins
Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers take center stage on Thursday as Major League Baseball’s new season gets under way on US soil against the backdrop of a gambling scandal that has engulfed its brightest star......»»
FOCAP condemns Chinese embassy’s claims on ‘manipulated’ West Philippine Sea videos
The Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines strongly rejected and condemned yesterday China’s “false and baseless” claims that journalists manipulate videosthey recorded in the South China Sea to present the Philippines as a victim......»»
House leaves Quiboloy’s fate to Senate
The House of Representatives will no longer pursue and implement the warrant of arrest it issued against pastor Apollo Quiboloy after it approved on final reading the bill revoking the franchise of the evangelist’s alleged TV network......»»
Panatag is proven PH territory; China claims it by bogus history
A civilian supply expedition to Panatag (Scarborough) is set this summer. The shoal is Philippine territory. Filipinos have every right to enter its 15,000-hectare lagoon bound by rocks and reefs......»»
From the Newsrooms: March 17 to 23, 2024
By: CMFR StaffPosted on: March 25, 2024, 8:00 amUpdated on: March 25, 2024, 1:00 am THIS WEEK, "From the Newsrooms" looks at the media coverage of two events. On March 20, a hearing in the House on the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) revealed that Chinese nationals were included in the Philippine Coast Guard Auxiliary (PCGA). On March 21, Arnolfo Teves, the alleged mastermind of the Pamplona.....»»
Probe continues to determine fault in Cotabato van-truck collision
Investigators are still trying to establish who between two drivers was at fault in Monday’s collision of a van and a dump truck that both burst into flames in an accident in Antipas, Cotabato that resulted in the death of 17 individuals......»»
Mayor orders probe on alleged consumption of confiscated fish by CLO Enforcement Team
Mayor orders probe on alleged consumption of confiscated fish by CLO Enforcement Team.....»»
NEWS BRIEFS | 25 March 2024
Senate eyes probe of resorts within the slopes of Mt. Apo Following the controversy involving the establishment of a resort reportedly within the famed Chocolate Hills in Bohol province, Senator Raffy Tulfo, chair of the Senate Committees on Energy and Migrant Workers, is setting his sights on the resorts located on the slopes of Mt. […].....»»