Author: AFP

Residents of Russia’s Kursk region have made co-ordinated social media posts appealing for help to find relatives trapped by a Ukrainian border offensive launched last August, Russian media reported Wednesday. Kyiv seized dozens of small towns and villages in the incursion, more than two years into Russia’s full-scale military assault on Ukraine. Residents in the Russian region have for months accused authorities of not doing enough to secure their loved ones, and of keeping them in the dark about the scale of fighting. “There are about 3,000 civilians still under occupation in the Sudzhadistrict of the Kursk region,” relatives said…

The head of Israel’s military, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, resigned on Tuesday over his responsibility for its “failure” during the Palestinian resistance group Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023. In his resignation letter, released by the army, Halevi said he was leaving “due to my acknowledgement of responsibility for the (military’s) failure on October 7”. He said he was leaving at a time of “significant successes” for the military, though he also said that “not all” of Israel’s war goals had been met. “The objectives of the war have not all been achieved. The army will continue to fight to…

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government to resign on Tuesday after the country’s military chief quit over the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack. Lapid said he saluted military chief Herzi Halevi for stepping down and added: “Now, it is time for them to take responsibility and resign — the prime minister and his entire catastrophic government.”

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen invoked the “enduring strength” of transatlantic ties Monday as she congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration for a second term as US president. “The EU looks forward to working closely with you to tackle global challenges,” the European Commission president wrote on X. “Together, our societies can achieve greater prosperity and strengthen their common security.”

French President Emmanuel Macron warned on Monday that Russia’s war against Ukraine would not end “tomorrow or the day after”, after Donald Trump pledged to quickly end the conflict. “This conflict will not end tomorrow or the day after,” Macron told the armed forces.

Bitcoin hit a record high above $109,000 on Monday as Donald Trump, who plans to deregulate the cryptocurrency sector and has launched his own “meme coin”, prepares to be sworn in as US president. Bitcoin surged to an all-time peak of $109,241 ahead of Trump’s inauguration ceremony, before falling back to around $107,000. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has soared nearly 60 percent in value since Trump won the presidential election in early November, which saw it surpass $100,000 for the first time at the start of December. It came after he nominated cryptocurrency backer Paul Atkins to head the US…

President Donald Trump declared Monday that America’s “decline is over,” framing his return to power as a rejection of the “radical and corrupt” establishment he claimed defined Joe Biden’s presidency. “My recent election is a mandate to completely and totally reverse a horrible betrayal and all of these many betrayals that have taken place, and to give the people back their faith, their wealth, their democracy and indeed their freedom,” Trump said. “From this moment on, America’s decline is over.”

For the first time in more than a year, war-displaced Gazan Ammar Barbakh awoke on Monday feeling refreshed after a night spent in a tent, but free of Israeli attacks. “This is the first time I sleep comfortably and I’m not afraid,” Barbakh, 35, told AFP a day after a fragile truce in the Israel-Hamas war took hold. “We didn’t hear any shelling, and we weren’t afraid,” he said. Barbakh, from Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, pitched a tent on the rubble of his former home. Despite the destruction, he was thrilled to have had a peaceful sleep.…

A fire broke out early Monday at a retirement home on the outskirts of the Serbian capital, Belgrade, killing eight people and injuring seven. Luka Causic, a police officer overseeing the emergency response, said there were around 30 people inside when the fire broke out at 3:30 am (02:30 GMT). “Unfortunately, eight individuals lost their lives in the fire. I must say that members of the emergency response sector reacted very promptly and successfully rescued, or rather evacuated, 13 people,” Labour Minister Nemanja Starovic told local media. Earlier, rescue officials said at least six people had died. “I would like…

A wounded North Korean soldier captured by Ukraine in Russia’s Kursk region has told interrogators that Pyongyang’s troops fighting for Moscow are suffering serious losses, official video published Monday showed. Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers in the border region and has posted videos of their interrogation, with one speaking on camera about his experiences. Moscow has not acknowledged the deployment of Pyongyang’s forces to fight in the Kursk region, confirmed by Seoul and Washington. President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday posted a video of a young soldier lying in bed saying there had been many casualties after he entered…