Headline

Children Killed As Russia Launches Largest Air Attack On Ukraine

Published

8 months ago

May 25, 2025

Russian strikes killed at least 12 people in Ukraine overnight, officials said Sunday, as Kyiv and Moscow traded fire even as they completed their biggest prisoner exchange since the start of the war.

Ukraine’s emergency services described a night of “terror” as Russia launched a second straight night of massive air strikes, including on the capital Kyiv.

The attacks came even as the two countries completed their biggest prisoner swap since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, with 1,000 captured soldiers and civilian prisoners exchanged by each side.

The death toll from the latest Russian strikes included two children, aged eight and 12, and a 17-year-old, killed in the northwestern region of Zhytomyr, officials said.

“Without truly strong pressure on the Russian leadership, this brutality cannot be stopped,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media.

“The silence of America, the silence of others around the world only encourages Putin,” he said, adding: “Sanctions will certainly help.”

The European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, called for “the strongest international pressure on Russia to stop this war”.

“Last night’s attacks again show Russia bent on more suffering and the annihilation of Ukraine. Devastating to see children among innocent victims harmed and killed,” she said on social media.

The renewed strikes came after Russia launched 14 ballistic missiles and 250 drones overnight Friday to Saturday, which wounded 15, according to Ukrainian officials.

Ukraine’s military said on Sunday it had shot down a total of 45 Russian missiles and 266 attack drones overnight.

Russia meanwhile said it had brought down 110 Ukrainian drones.

Four people were reported dead in Ukraine’s western Khmelnytskyi region, four in the Kyiv region, and one in Mykolaiv in the south.

Emergency services said 16 people were also injured in the Kyiv region, including three children, in the “massive night attack”.

“We saw the whole street was on fire,” a 65-year-old retired woman, Tetiana Iankovska, told AFP in Makhalivka village just southwest of Kyiv.

Another retiree who survived the strikes, Oleskandr, 64, said he had no faith in talks around a ceasefire.

“We don’t need talks, but weapons, a lot of weapons to stop them (the Russians). Because Russia understands only force, nothing else,” he said.

– Major prisoner exchange –

Russia said Sunday it had exchanged another 303 Ukrainian prisoners of war for the same number of Russian soldiers held by Kyiv — the last phase of the prisoner swap agreed during talks between the two sides in Istanbul on May 16.

Russia and Ukraine had over three days “carried out the exchange of 1,000 people for 1,000 people”, the defence ministry said.

Zelensky confirmed the swap was complete.

Both sides received 390 people in the first stage on Friday and 307 in the second stage on Saturday.

Russia has signalled it will send Ukraine its terms for a peace settlement after the exchange, without saying what those terms would be.

– Diplomatic push –

US President Donald Trump on Friday congratulated the two countries for the swap.

“This could lead to something big,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Trump’s efforts to broker a ceasefire in Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II have so far been unsuccessful, despite his pledge to rapidly end the fighting.

An AFP reporter saw some of the formerly captive Ukrainian soldiers arrive at a hospital in the northern Chernigiv region, emaciated but smiling and waving to crowds waiting outside.

“It’s simply crazy. Crazy feelings,” 31-year-old Konstantin Steblev, a soldier, told AFP Friday as he stepped back onto Ukrainian soil after three years in captivity.

One of the soldiers formerly held captive, 58-year-old Viktor Syvak, told AFP it was hard to express his emotional homecoming.

Captured in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, he had been held for 37 months and 12 days.

“It’s impossible to describe. I can’t put it into words. It’s very joyful,” he said.

Headline

Russia, China Afraid Of US Under My Administration — Trump

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Editor

United States President, Donald Trump, has said Russia and China fear the United States because of the strength of his administration, arguing that American global influence is driven primarily by its military power and leadership.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday stated that rival powers would not take NATO seriously without the United States, claiming the alliance lacks deterrent force in the absence of American involvement.

He expressed doubts about whether NATO members would come to the aid of the US in a real crisis, despite Washington’s continued commitment to the alliance.

The president credited his leadership with rebuilding the US military during his first term and sustaining its strength, describing this as the key reason adversaries show respect and caution toward the country.

He maintained that America’s military dominance has played a central role in preserving global stability and saving lives.

Trump also argued that his administration forced NATO members to increase defence spending, saying many allies had previously failed to meet financial commitments while relying heavily on the US.

He added that his actions helped prevent further escalation in Eastern Europe and contributed to the resolution of multiple conflicts.

According to Trump, the United States remains the only nation that commands genuine fear and respect from both Russia and China, a position he attributed to his administration’s approach to defence, diplomacy, and global leadership.

“He wrote partly, “The only Nation that China and Russia fear and respect is the DJT REBUILT U.S.A. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!! President DJT.”

Headline

Trump To Withdraw US From 66 UN, International Organisations

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Editor

United States President, Donald Trump, has announced plans to withdraw the US from 66 United Nations and international organisations, including key global bodies focused on climate change, peace and democracy.

The decision was disclosed in a presidential memorandum released by the White House on Wednesday evening, following a review of which “organizations, conventions, and treaties are contrary to the interests of the United States.”

According to Trump, the move will see the US end its participation in the affected organisations and cut all related funding.

A list shared by the White House showed that 35 of the organisations are non-UN bodies, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Although listed as a non-UN body by the White House, the IPCC is a United Nations organisation that brings together leading scientists to assess climate change evidence and provide periodic reports to guide political leaders.

The memorandum also announced the US withdrawal from 31 UN entities, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the UN Democracy Fund, and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), which focuses on maternal and child health.

Several of the targeted UN bodies are involved in protecting vulnerable groups during armed conflicts, including the UN Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.

Reacting to the announcement, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a note to correspondents on Wednesday evening that the organisation expected to issue a response by Thursday morning.

Despite repeatedly stating his desire to limit US involvement in UN forums, Trump has continued to exert influence on international decision-making.

In October last year, he threatened to impose sanctions on diplomats who formally adopted a levy on polluting shipping fuels that had already been agreed to at an earlier meeting, a move that stalled the deal for 12 months.

The Trump administration also sanctioned UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese after she released a report detailing the role of international and US companies in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

During his first term in 2017, Trump similarly threatened to cut aid to countries that supported a draft UN resolution condemning the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, the US wields significant influence at the United Nations, including veto power, which it has repeatedly used to block efforts to end Israel’s war on Gaza before later mediating a ceasefire.

(Aljazeera)

Headline

UK Supported US Mission To Seize Russian-flagged Oil Tanker – Defense Ministry

Published

2 days ago

January 7, 2026

Editor

The British Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday that it provided support to the United States in its operation to seize a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic.

US seized the tanker, which was being shadowed by a Russian submarine on Wednesday, after pursuing it for more than two weeks across the Atlantic as part of Washington’s efforts to block Venezuelan oil exports.

According to Britain, its armed forces gave pre-planned operational support, including basing following a US request for assistance.

The UK also said a military vessel provided support for the US forces pursuing the tanker, and the Royal Air Force provided surveillance support from the air.

Defence Secretary John Healey stated that the operation targeted a vessel with a nefarious history linked to Russian and Iranian sanctions evasion networks.

“This action formed part of global efforts to crack down on sanctions busting,” he said in a statement.

According to him, the US was Britain’s closest defence and security partner.

“The depth of our defence relationship with the US is an essential part of our security, and today’s seamlessly executed operation shows just how well this works in practice,” he added.

The British government said that the Bella-1 tanker, now renamed Marinera, is sanctioned by the US under its counter-Iran sanctions,

The MoD statement said the support was provided in full compliance with international law.