KYIV: Russian shelling damaged a landmark church Thursday in the Ukrainian city of Kherson that until last year held the remains of Prince Grigory Potemkin, an 18th-century Russian military commander who encouraged Catherine the Great to expand the Russian Empire into what is now southern Ukraine.
Ukraine’s emergency service said four of its workers were wounded in a second round of shelling as they fought a fire at St. Catherine’s Cathedral. Four other people were wounded in the first shelling attack, which also hit a trolleybus, the prosecutor general’s office said.
A missile strike severely damaged a beloved Orthodox cathedral in Odesa, another city in southern Ukraine, and Thursday’s attack further underlined the war’s risk to the country’s cultural monuments. Fighting has intensified in multiple regions as Ukraine’s military steps up a counteroffensive to reclaim Russian-occupied territory.
The Kherson church, dating from 1781, is one of the city’s most notable buildings. It once was the burial spot for Potemkin, a favorite of Catherine the Great’s who exerted Russian control through the southeast parts of modern Ukraine and engineered the 1784 annexation of Crimea from the Crimean Khanate.
Potemkin became the governor general of what was called “New Russia.” His name entered popular speech because of stories, now widely doubted, that he erected fake settlements called “Potemkin villages” to impress Catherine during her long journey through Crimea and the southern territories.
In September, at a Kremlin ceremony marking Russian’s illegal annexation of four occupied or partially occupied Ukraine provinces, President Vladimir Putin referenced the concept of New Russia and noted that both Catherine and Potemkin had founded cities there.
Moscow-backed authorities had Potemkin’s remains removed during the city’s eight-month occupation. Russian forces withdrew from Kherson in November as Ukrainian soldiers gained ground in their attempt to take back the regions Putin annexed.
The Russian retreat instantly made the city a target of daily Russian attacks, most of them involving artillery and drones sent from Russian-held territory across the Dnieper River. The relentless strikes often result in reports of civilian casualties.
The Ukrainian president’s office said two people were killed over the past day in Russian attacks — one in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk province and one in Zaporizhzhia province.
The Ukrainian air force said Russia launched a wave of 15 Shahed exploding drones against the Kyiv region but all were shot down. The governor of the capital region, Ruslan Kravchenko, said there were no injuries or damage.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia so far has launched at least 1,961 Shahed drones, adding that “a significant number of them have been shot down.”
“Unfortunately, not all of them,” he said in a nightly video address to the nation, noting that Ukraine has been talking to its Western allies to provide more air defense weapons. “We are working to shoot down more — to shoot down as many as possible. We are working to have more air defense systems.”
Ukraine’s military also continued to launch attack drones deep into Russia. The Russian Defense Ministry said seven Ukrainian drones were downed in the Kaluga region, about 150 kilometers (90 miles) south of Moscow, the latest incident following attacks that twice hit buildings in the Russian capital that house some government ministries.
Kaluga Gov. Vladislav Shapsha reported another drone was shot down later Thursday.
The deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, said Thursday that 231,000 men have enlisted in the Russian army as contract soldiers since Jan. 1. Medvedev made the remarks at a meeting on expanding the army just months after Russian authorities launched a massive campaign to entice more men to sign military contracts.
Moscow is seeking to boost its forces in Ukraine and to bring the size of its army to 1.5 million troops. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu declared in December that the country needs that many soldiers “to fulfill tasks to ensure Russia’s security.”
Russian shelling hits a landmark church in the Ukrainian city of Kherson
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Russian shelling hits a landmark church in the Ukrainian city of Kherson
- Ukraine’s emergency service said four of its workers were wounded in a second round of shelling as they fought a fire at St. Catherine’s Cathedral
- A missile strike severely damaged a beloved Orthodox cathedral in Odesa, another city in southern Ukraine
Disruptions at University of Chicago graduation as school withholds 4 diplomas over protests
- Amid calls to “Stop Genocide" in Gaza, a crowd of students carrying Palestinian flags walked out between speeches, and a demonstration followed the official ceremony
- Students have walked out of commencements at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and others as protest camps have sprung up across the US and in Europe
CHICAGO: Dozens of students protesting the war in Gaza walked out of the University of Chicago’s commencement Saturday as the school withheld the diplomas of four seniors over their involvement with a pro-Palestinian encampment.
The disruption to the rainy two-hour outdoor ceremony was brief, with shouts, boos and calls to “Stop Genocide.” A crowd of students walked out between speeches, and a demonstration followed the official ceremony. Some chanted as they held Palestinian flags, while others donned traditional kaffiyeh, black and white checkered scarves that represent Palestinian solidarity, over their robes.
Four graduating seniors, including Youssef Haweh, were informed by email in recent days that their degrees would be withheld pending a disciplinary process related to complaints about the encampment, according to student group UChicago United for Palestine.
“My diploma doesn’t matter when there are people in Palestine and in Gaza that will never walk a stage again, who will never receive a diploma. What about them? Who’s going to fight for them?” Haweh said in a Saturday statement.
University officials acknowledged the walkout, saying the school is “committed to upholding the rights of students to express a wide range of views,” according to a statement.
Students have walked out of commencements at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and others as protest camps have sprung up across the US and in Europe in recent weeks. Students have demanded their universities stop doing business with Israel or companies they say support its war in Gaza. Organizers seek to amplify calls to end Israel’s war with Hamas, which they describe as a genocide against the Palestinians.
A small demonstration after the commencement, where protesters tried to access a closed street, resulted in the arrest of one person not affiliated with the school, university officials said in a statement.
The University of Chicago encampment was cleared May 7. Administrators had initially adopted a permissive approach, but later said the protest had crossed a line and caused growing concerns about safety. One group temporarily took over a building on the school’s campus.
University officials have said the demonstrations prompted formal complaints including for “disruptive conduct,” and would require further review. The students were still able to participate in graduation, and can receive their degrees if they are later cleared after the university inquiry into alleged violations of campus policy. The university didn’t have comment Saturday about the diplomas.
Thousands of students and faculty members have signed a petition calling for the university to grant the degrees, while more than a dozen Chicago City Council members have penned a letter asking for the same.
WHO member countries approve steps to bolster health regulations to better brace for pandemics
- Amendments to global health regulations include helping developing countries gain better access to financing and medical products to fight pandemics
- Talks aimed at reaching a global agreement on how to better fight pandemics will be concluded by 2025
GENEVA: The World Health Organization says member countries on Saturday approved a series of new steps to improve global preparedness for and response to pandemics like COVID-19 and mpox.
The WHO’s 194 member states have been negotiating for two years on an agreement that could increase collaboration before and during pandemics after the acknowledged failures during COVID-19.
Countries agreed to amend the International Health Regulations, which were adopted in 2005, such as by defining a “pandemic emergency” and helping developing countries gain better access to financing and medical products, WHO said.
The agreement came as the UN agency wrapped up its six-day World Health Assembly this year, after plans to adopt a more sweeping pandemic “treaty” at the meeting was shelved largely over disagreements between developing countries and richer ones about better sharing of technology and the pathogens that trigger outbreaks.
But the groups agreed to complete negotiations on the pandemic accord next year or earlier if possible, the WHO said.
“The historic decisions taken today demonstrate a common desire by member states to protect their own people, and the world’s, from the shared risk of public health emergencies and future pandemics,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.
“With this agreement, we take steps to hold countries accountable and strengthen measures to stop outbreaks before they threaten Americans and our security,” said US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra on Saturday.
The changes to the global health rules were aimed at shoring up the world’s defenses against new pathogens after COVID-19 killed more than 7 million people, according to WHO data.
Lawrence Gostin, a public health law expert at Georgetown University, hailed a “big win for health security,” and posted on X that the move “will simplify negotiations for the pandemic agreement.”
WHO said countries have defined a pandemic emergency as a communicable disease that has a “wide geographical spread” or a high risk of one, and has exceeded or can exceed the ability of national health systems to respond.
It’s also defined as an outbreak that has or could cause “substantial” economic or social disruption and requires quick international action, the agency said.
Yuanqiong Hu, a senior legal and policy adviser at Doctors without Borders, said that the changes adopted Saturday include “important provisions addressing equity in access to health products during global health emergencies.”
WHO extends anti-pandemic treaty talks
- WHO agreed in 2021 as the COVID-19 pandemic eased to launch talks on an accord to counter any new global health crisis
GENEVA: The World Health Organization annual assembly on Saturday gave member countries another year to agree on a landmark accord to combat future pandemics.
Three years of efforts to reach a deal ended last month in failure. But WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed what he called “historic” decisions taken to make a new bid for an accord.
The WHO agreed in 2021 as the COVID-19 pandemic eased to launch talks on an accord to counter any new global health crisis. Millions died from Covid-19 which brought health systems in many countries to their knees.
Talks hit multiple obstacles however with many developing countries angry that rich nations monopolized available Covid-19 vaccines.
They have sought assurances that any new accord will make provision of medicines and the sharing of research more equitable.
The WHO annual assembly “made concrete commitments to completing negotiations on a global pandemic agreement within a year, at the latest,” said a statement released at the end of the Geneva meeting.
The assembly also agreed amendments to an international framework of binding health rules to introduce the notion of a “pandemic emergency” which calls on member states to take “rapid” coordinated action, said the statement.
“The historic decisions taken today demonstrate a common desire by member states to protect their own people, and the world’s, from the shared risk of public health emergencies and future pandemics,” said Tedros.
He said the change to health rules “will bolster countries’ ability to detect and respond to future outbreaks and pandemics by strengthening their own national capacities, and coordination between fellow states, on disease surveillance, information sharing and response.”
Tedros added: “The decision to conclude the pandemic agreement within the next year demonstrates how strongly and urgently countries want it, because the next pandemic is a matter of when, not if.”
Anti-Islam campaigner’s supporters chant hate slogans during London protest
- People chant ‘we want our country back,’ hold banner reading ‘this is London, not Londonistan’
- 9 pro-Palestine activists, holding stationary counter-protest, arrested for leaving pavement
LONDON: Thousands of supporters of British anti-Islam campaigner Tommy Robinson demonstrated in central London on Saturday, chanting anti-Muslim slogans, The Independent reported.
English actor and broadcaster Laurence Fox and Robinson, one of the UK’s most prominent far-right activists, were spotted leading the protest as crowds behind them chanted: “We want our country back.” Protesters carried a banner that read: “This is London, not Londonistan.”
Robinson said on stage: “This is what London should look like … We’re not going to be silenced any longer.” He thanked the Metropolitan Police for “staying out of our way.”
The Independent reported that nine pro-Palestinian activists from Youth Demand, holding a stationary counter-protest nearby, were arrested.
A Scotland Yard spokesperson posted on X: “Nine Youth Demand protesters were arrested for breaching Public Order Act conditions not to leave the pavement.”
Nick Lowles, CEO of Hope Not Hate, a UK-based advocacy group that campaigns against racism, said ahead of the demonstration: “We have unearthed shocking messages from hooligan chat groups where people are threatening to attack people of color, pro-Palestine demonstrators and even the police.”
Commander Louise Puddefoot said: “For some in London, in particular our Muslim communities, comments made by those associated with this event will … cause fear and uncertainty.
“All Londoners have a right to feel and be safe in their city, and we will take a zero tolerance approach to any racially or religiously motivated hate crime we become aware of.”
EU parliament should look to Rome for inspiration, Meloni tells rally
- Meloni, head of the rightist Brothers of Italy party, is one of Europe’s most closely watched leaders
ROME: The next European Parliament should copy the current Italian model of government, drawing together all parties on the right of the political spectrum to rule together, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Saturday.
Addressing her only campaign rally ahead of a June 6-9 vote across the European Union, Meloni said the 27-nation bloc needed to rein in its regulatory ambitions and interfere less in the lives of its citizens.
Meloni, head of the rightist Brothers of Italy party, is one of Europe’s most closely watched leaders, presenting herself as a bridge between the mainstream center-right and her own arch-conservative camp, which was previously shunned.
Opinion polls suggest that groups around the political center — the center-right, center-left, Greens and Liberals — will be able to form another majority in the next EU parliament, which decides on laws that drive policy in the bloc.
But Meloni, who leads a coalition in Italy that unites centrist and far-right parties, said she wanted to see this replicated at a European level to foster a conservative agenda.
“We have a clear objective — we want to do in Brussels what we did in Rome a year and a half ago; build a center-right government in Europe and finally send the leftists, reds, greens and yellows, who have caused so much damage to our continent over the years, into opposition,” she said.
In a one hour-long speech, she made no mention of merging her conservative umbrella group in Europe with a far-right alliance that includes Marine Le Pen’s National Rally in France.
While EU moderates say they can work with Meloni, whose party is expected to win the most votes in Italy, they have ruled out any power-sharing deal with Le Pen and her allies.
Meloni said past EU commissions — the bloc’s de facto government — had been out of touch with ordinary people, and that it should be more pragmatic in future.
“Europe can continue to try to regulate every aspect of our existence and be ineffective in crisis scenarios right at our doorstep, or it can choose to do fewer things and do them better,” she told a crowd of flag-waving supporters.
She highlighted areas where she said Europe was failing, including by imposing demanding environmental standards on firms that had to compete against countries with no such restraints or that had much lower production costs.
Specific mention was made to the growing power of Chinese car manufacturers, amid alarm that the EU’s promotion of green energy will damage Italy’s auto industry.
“Europe can continue to open our markets to those who do not respect our same social and environmental standards, or it can protect our businesses adequately from unfair competition to defend the civilization and welfare that has been achieved over the centuries,” she said, to cheers.
