Russia says it thwarted a Ukrainian charge to expand its incursion. Kyiv says it won’t occupy land

Ukrainian servicemen operate an armoured military vehicle in the Sumy region, near the border with Russia, on August 13, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Updated 14 August 2024
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Russia says it thwarted a Ukrainian charge to expand its incursion. Kyiv says it won’t occupy land

  • The commander of the Ukrainian military, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said in a video posted Tuesday to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Telegram channel that Ukraine now controls 74 settlements in the Kursk region

KYIV, Ukraine: Russia said Tuesday that its forces checked an effort by Ukrainian troops to expand a stunning weeklong incursion into the Kursk region, as a Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Kyiv has no intention of occupying Russian territory.
Russian army units, including fresh reserves, aircraft, drone teams and artillery forces, stopped Ukrainian armored mobile groups from moving deeper into Russia near the Kursk settlements of Obshchy Kolodez, Snagost, Kauchuk and Alexeyevsky, a Russian Defense Ministry statement said.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi said the cross-border operation was aimed at protecting Ukrainian land from long-range strikes launched from Kursk.
“Ukraine is not interested in taking the territory of the Kursk region, but we want to protect the lives of our people,” Tykhyi was quoted as saying by local media.
He said Russia had launched more than 2,000 strikes from the Kursk region in recent months using anti-aircraft missiles, artillery, mortars, drones, 255 glide bombs and more than 100 missiles.
“The purpose of this operation is to preserve the lives of our children, to protect the territory of Ukraine from Russian strikes,” he said.
The commander of the Ukrainian military, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said in a video posted Tuesday to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Telegram channel that Ukraine now controls 74 settlements in the Kursk region.
Ukrainian troops have continued to advance, gaining control over 40 square kilometers (15 square miles) of territory in the past 24 hours, Syrskyi said.
“Fights are ongoing along the entire front line. The situation, despite the high intensity of combat, is under control,” he added.
Ukraine’s Western partners have said the country has the right to defend itself, including by attacking across the border. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Tuesday that he backed the Ukrainian operation, though he said Kyiv officials did not consult him about it beforehand.
Russian military actions in Ukraine bear “the hallmarks of genocide, inhumane crimes, and Ukraine has every right to wage war in such a way as to paralyze Russia in its aggressive intentions as effectively as possible,” Tusk said.
Kremlin forces intensified their attacks in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine’s General Staff said Tuesday that over the previous 24 hours, Russian troops launched 52 assaults in the area of Pokrovsk, a town in Ukraine’s Donetsk region that is close to the front line. That’s roughly double the number of daily attacks there a week ago.
Ukraine’s undermanned army has struggled to hold back the bigger, better-equipped Russian forces in Donetsk.
The Ukrainian military claims that its charge onto Russian soil that began Aug. 6 has already encompassed about 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of Russian territory. The goals of the swift advance into the Kursk region have been a closely guarded military secret.
Analysts say a catalyst may also have been Ukraine’s desire to ease pressure on its front line by attempting to draw the Kremlin’s forces into defending Kursk and other border areas. If so, the increased pressure around Pokrovsk suggests Moscow did not take the bait.
Ukraine’s ambitious operation — the largest attack on Russia since World War II — has rattled the Kremlin. It compelled Russian President Vladimir Putin to convene a meeting Monday with his top defense officials.
Apparently, Ukraine assembled thousands of troops — some Western analysts estimate up to 12,000 — on the border in recent weeks without Russia noticing or acting.
About 121,000 people have been evacuated from Kursk or have fled the areas affected by fighting on their own, Russian officials say. The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said it has seen geolocated footage indicating that Ukrainian forces advanced as much as 24 kilometers (15 miles) from the border.
The Russian Defense Ministry appeared to support that claim when it said Tuesday it had also blocked an attack by the units of Ukraine’s 82nd Air Assault Brigade toward Maryinka, which is about that distance from Ukraine.
Russian state television on Tuesday showed residents from evacuated areas lining up in buildings and on the street to receive food and water. Volunteers were pictured distributing bags of aid, while officials from the country’s Ministry of Emergency Situations helped people, including children and older people, off buses.
“There is no light, no connection, no water. There is nothing. It’s as if everyone has flown to another planet, and you are left alone. And the birds stopped singing,” an older man called Mikhail told Russian state television. “Helicopters and planes fly over the yard and shells were flying. What could we do? We left everything behind.”
A motive behind Ukraine’s bold dive into Russia was to stir up unrest, according to Putin, but he said that effort would fail.
The successful border breach also was surprising because Ukraine has been short of manpower at the front as it waits for new brigades to complete training.
Dara Massicot, an analyst at the Carnegie Endowment, said the Ukrainian breakthrough was a smart move because it exploited gaps between various Russian commands in Kursk: border guards, Ministry of Defense forces and Chechen units that have been fighting on Russia’s side in the war.
Russian command and control is fractured in Kursk, Massicot said on X late Monday.
The Ukrainian Army’s General Staff announced Tuesday that it was establishing a 20-kilometer (12-mile) restricted-access zone along Russian-Ukrainian border in the northeastern Sumy region, which borders Kursk.
The measures were introduced because of the increasing intensity of combat in the area and the rising presence of Russian reconnaissance and sabotage units there, a statement said.

 


Japan’s Ishiba vows military buildup and deeper ties with US as regional tension rises

Updated 57 min 25 sec ago
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Japan’s Ishiba vows military buildup and deeper ties with US as regional tension rises

  • Shigeru Ishiba: Security environment surrounding Japan and the international community has significantly worsened due to escalating tensions with China, Russia and North Korea

TOKYO: Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Saturday renewed a pledge to build up his country’s military and deepen its alliance with the United States under President-elect Donald Trump.
Ishiba, who made the comments at an annual troop review held at Camp Asaka in the Tokyo suburbs, said the security environment surrounding Japan and the international community has significantly worsened due to escalating tensions with China, Russia and North Korea. He pledged to reinforce Japan’s military power.
He said breaches of Japanese airspace by Chinese and Russian warplanes earlier this year “not only violated Japanese sovereignty but also threatened the safety of Japan and are absolutely unacceptable.” He said Japan faces growing threats from China’s accelerating military activity around Japanese coasts and from North Korea’s repeated missile firings.
“As we face the most severe and complex security environment, I will balance and strengthen Japan’s diplomacy and security,” Ishiba said in his speech before hundreds of troops gathered for the ceremony.
The Japan-US alliance is the lynchpin for achieving this, Ishiba said, pledging to elevate Japan’s ties with the United States and work closely with Trump as they agreed during a brief telephone conversation Thursday.
Ishiba took office on Oct. 1, replacing his unpopular predecessor Fumio Kishida but his governing coalition badly lost a recent parliamentary election and could face difficulty pursuing his party’s planned policies and budget plans in coming months.
Ishiba pledged to pursue the ongoing military buildup plan under the 2022 security strategy adopted by his predecessor, Fumio Kishida, which calls for a counter-strike capability with long-range cruise-missiles, a break from its self-defense only principle. Ishiba said he will pursue strengthening of command system to improve operation between Japanese and US troops.
After its devastating defeat in World War II, Japan had prioritized economic recovery over defense under its war-renouncing constitution, but has steadily strengthened its defense capability over the past years.


At least 13 killed in Pakistan train station bomb blast, police say

Updated 4 min 32 sec ago
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At least 13 killed in Pakistan train station bomb blast, police say

QUETTA: At least 13 people were killed and 25 injured in a bomb blast at a railway station in Quetta in southwestern Pakistan on Saturday, a police official told Reuters.
Pakistan is grappling with a surge in militant attacks in its northwest and a growing separatist insurgency in the south.
“The blast took place inside the railway station when the Peshawar-bound express was about to leave for its destination,” said the senior superintendent of police operations, Muhammad Baloch.
No group has claimed responsibility for the blast.


North Korea jams GPS signals, affecting ships, aircraft in South

Updated 09 November 2024
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North Korea jams GPS signals, affecting ships, aircraft in South

  • North Korea has become one of the most vocal and important backers of Russia’s offensive in Ukraine

Seoul: North Korea staged GPS jamming attacks on Friday and Saturday, Seoul’s military said, an operation that was affecting several ships and dozens of civilian aircraft in South Korea.
The jamming allegations come about a week after the North test-fired what it said was its most advanced and powerful solid-fuel ICBM missile, its first such launch since being accused of sending soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine.
The South fired its own ballistic missile into the sea on Friday in a show of force aimed at showing its resolve to respond to “any North Korean provocations.”
“North Korea conducted GPS jamming provocations in Haeju and Kaesong yesterday and today (November 8-9),” Seoul’s joint chiefs of staff said in a statement Saturday, adding several vessels and dozens of civilian aircraft were experiencing “some operational disruptions” as a result.
The military warned ships and aircraft operating in the Yellow Sea to beware of such attacks.
“We strongly urge North Korea to immediately cease its GPS provocations and warn that it will be held responsible for any subsequent issues arising from this,” they said in the statement.
Tensions on the peninsula have been at their highest pitch in years, with the North launching a flurry of ballistic missiles in violation of UN sanctions.
It also has been bombarding the South with trash-carrying balloons since May, in what it says is retaliation for anti-Pyongyang propaganda missives sent North by activists.
North Korea has become one of the most vocal and important backers of Russia’s offensive in Ukraine.
Seoul and the West have long accused Pyongyang of supplying artillery shells and missiles to Moscow for use in Ukraine.
The latest accusations, based on intelligence reports, indicate the North has deployed around 10,000 troops to Russia, suggesting even deeper involvement in the conflict and triggering outcry in Seoul, Kyiv and Western capitals.
South Korea, a major arms exporter, has a long-standing policy of not providing weapons to countries in conflict.
But President Yoon Suk Yeol said this week that Seoul is now not ruling out the possibility of providing weapons directly to Ukraine, given Pyongyang’s military support of Moscow.
On Friday, Seoul’s presidential office said cyberattacks by pro-Russian hacking groups against South Korea have increased following North Korea’s troop dispatch for Russia’s war in Ukraine.


Indonesia volcano catapults vast ash tower into sky

Updated 09 November 2024
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Indonesia volcano catapults vast ash tower into sky

  • There were no immediate reports of damage to nearby villages from Saturday’s fresh eruption.
  • Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire.”

East Flores: A volcano in eastern Indonesia erupted again on Saturday, sending a giant ash tower nine kilometers (more than five miles) into the sky, days after it killed nine people and forced thousands of locals to evacuate.
Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, a 1,703-meter (5,587-foot) twin-peaked volcano on the tourist island of Flores, has erupted more than a dozen times this week, killing nine people after its initial burst on Monday.
“The ash column was observed at approximately 9,000 meters above the summit. The ash column appeared grey with thick intensity,” the country’s volcanology agency said in a statement about the eruption that began at 04:47 local time (2047 GMT).
There were no immediate reports of damage to nearby villages from Saturday’s fresh eruption.
But the agency warned residents to “remain alert to the potential for cold lava floods” due to heavy rainfall.
On Friday, another huge eruption forced officials at a nearby monitoring post to evacuate as ash and small rocks rained down.
The mountain on Thursday spewed an ash tower eight kilometers high, which locals said was one of the biggest they had ever seen.
More than 10,000 people have been affected by the eruptions, with officials telling locals to permanently relocate from an eight-kilometer exclusion zone.
The head of Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency said authorities would temporarily house and fund locals while new homes were built.
“Since the preparation and planning process for relocation takes time, we hope we can build them quickly,” said Suharyanto, who goes by one name, on a visit to a shelter Friday.
Laki-Laki, which means “man” in Indonesian, is twinned with a calmer volcano named after the Indonesian word for “woman.”
Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire.”


Over 130 homes lost in California wildfire as winds drop

Updated 09 November 2024
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Over 130 homes lost in California wildfire as winds drop

  • The blaze erupted Wednesday morning and spread rapidly, fanned by fierce seasonal Santa Ana winds from California’s desert interior.

Camarillo: Firefighters grappling with a blaze that has destroyed at least 130 homes in California said Friday they had made progress in their fight as a turn in the weather offered a break.
Hurricane-strength winds this week fueled an explosion in the Mountain Fire near Camarillo, outside Los Angeles, which grew rapidly to over 20,000 acres (8,000 hectares).
Thousands of people in the path of the inferno were forced to flee, some with only minutes to gather possessions and pets as unpredictable flames leapt from home to home.
Robin Wallace told AFP the home she grew up in was destroyed minutes after everyone fled.
“We were expecting we’d be able to go back and get some things. But of course, that didn’t work out.
“It was completely gone by the afternoon. It went very quickly.”
Linda Fefferman said she knew she had to go when she smelled smoke.
“I’m trying to load the car with animals and important papers, my oxygen concentrator, and when it got too smoky for me, I knew I had to get out,” she told a local broadcaster.
A neighbor with a chainsaw helped remove a fallen tree that was blocking her path.
“I went down to the Goodwill parking lot, watched the smoke, you know, probably our own house burning.
“Nothing is left. It’s gone,” she said. “It’s all gone.”
Fefferman said she thought 14 or 15 houses on her street had been destroyed by the flames.
Authorities said Thursday that initial inspections revealed at least 132 homes had been lost, with 88 more damaged.
The area is home to around 30,000 people, with approximately 10,000 having been told to evacuate.
The blaze erupted Wednesday morning and spread rapidly, fanned by fierce seasonal Santa Ana winds from California’s desert interior.
Gusts up to 80 miles (130 kilometers) an hour pushed smoke and flames sideways, with terrifying footage showing fire engulfing brush, orchards and properties.
Those winds dropped Friday, with meteorologists saying they did not expect them to return for at least a few days.
That was welcome news for firefighters, some of whom had been on the frontlines for 36 hours straight.
The change in weather meant fire crews were able to make progress in their fight, said Nick Cleary of the Ventura County Fire Department, with 14 percent of the perimeter of the blaze contained.
“Today on the fire, we had a very successful day,” he told reporters, with a mild onshore breeze bringing some much-needed humidity.
More than 2,400 personnel, as well as engines, bulldozers and aircraft were involved in the fight.
“We need to keep using these resources with this advantageous weather that we’re having to get in there and make sure we’re mopping everything... so we’re not going to have any secondary starts,” Cleary said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom visited the area Thursday and declared a state of emergency, a move that will free up resources.
The White House said President Joe Biden called Newsom on Friday, along with local elected official Kelly Long, to discuss “support needed for the communities affected” and the approval of a Fire Management Assistance Grant by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Utility companies have shut off electricity to thousands of customers in the area — a common practice in California during high winds, with toppled power lines often causing wildfires.
Two relatively wet years have left California’s countryside flush with vegetation that is now dry and exceedingly flammable after a long, hot summer.
While fires, drought and strong winds are characteristics of the local environment, scientists say human-caused climate change is affecting weather patterns and increasing the likelihood of catastrophic events.