MOSCOW: A senior Russian commander said on Thursday that Ukrainian forces had been pushed out of one village in Russia’s border region but that Kyiv’s forces were still probing along the front more than nine days since the lightning incursion into Russia.
The biggest foreign attack on sovereign Russian territory since World War Two unfurled on Aug. 6 when thousands of Ukrainian troops smashed through Russia’s western border in an embarrassment for the Russian top military brass.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that his forces had advanced a few kilometers and that the goal of replenishing an ‘exchange fund’ of prisoners of war was being achieved. One Ukrainian official said Kyiv was carving out a buffer zone to protect its population against attack.
Major General Apti Alaudinov, who commands Chechnya’s Akhmat special forces who are fighting in Kursk, said that Russian forces had forced out Ukraine from Martynovka about 18 kilometers from the border.
“We have burned everything that moves, everything that we have been able to find,” Alaudinov told Russian state television from Kursk region, reminding viewers of Russia’s defeat of Napoleon’s 1812 invasion of Russia.
Alaudinov, a close ally of Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, said that Ukraine was sending in more forces into the Russian region but that the shift in resources was weakening Ukrainian forces at other parts of the front.
“The enemy is pushing, he is trying to get through from everywhere, push through,” Alaudinov said, admitting that initiative was still with Ukraine. “But every day the enemy’s forces are melting.”
The Russian town of Sudzha, a transhipment hub for Russian natural gas flowing to Europe via Ukraine, was not under full Ukrainian control, he said. Ukraine on Wednesday said it was fully under Ukrainian control.
Alaudinov also spoke of the chaotic battlefield situation in the region when his forces arrived shortly after the incursion, with forests teaming with Ukrainian forces and a lack of clarity on whose forces were where.
Ukraine’s incursion appeared aimed at forcing Moscow to slow its advance along the rest of the front inside Ukraine, though the Russian defense ministry also reported intense battles along the Ukraine front and said that its troops had taken better positions at several points.
Ukraine said there was no sign Russian military pressure was receding along the eastern front inside its borders on Thursday and reported the heaviest fighting in weeks near Pokrovsk.
GOING INTO RUSSIA
Supported by swarms of drones, heavy artillery and tanks, Ukrainian units have since carved out a sliver of the world’s biggest nuclear power and battles were ongoing along a front about 18km inside Russian territory on Thursday.
Kursk’s acting governor, Alexei Smirnov, said that the Glushkov district, which has a population of 20,000, was being evacuated. At least 200,000 people have so far been evacuated from the border regions, according to Russian data.
Kremlin deputy chief of staff, Sergei Kiriyenko, visited Kurchatov, the town servicing the Kursk nuclear power station which is just 40km from the fighting.
While the Ukrainian attack has embarrassed Moscow, revealed the weakness of its border defenses and changed the public narrative of the war, Russian officials said what they cast as a Ukrainian “invasion” would not change the course of the war.
Russia, which invaded Ukraine in 2022, has been advancing for most of the year along the 1,000-km front in Ukraine and has a vast numerical superiority. It controls 18 percent of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian incursion into Russia has yielded its biggest battlefield gains since 2022.
FIGHTING IN RUSSIA
The West, which backs Ukraine and has said it will not allow President Vladimir Putin to win the war, has repeatedly said it knew nothing of the Ukrainian plans to attack Russia. Russian officials say they do not believe such statements.
“Of course they are involved,” Russian lawmaker Maria Butina said. “When I studied in the United States the main rule was: ‘Don’t poke the bear’. What the West is doing today? They are poking the bear.”
Putin said on Monday that Ukraine “with the help of its Western masters” was aiming to improve Kyiv’s negotiating position ahead of possible peace talks.
Russia’s defense ministry published footage which it said showed a Russian drone destroying a US-made Stryker armored combat vehicle in the Kursk region. Russian officials have warned that if Western weapons were used on Russian territory, then Moscow would consider that a grave escalation.
By bringing the war to Russia, Zelensky faces the risk of weakening Kyiv’s defenses along the front in Ukraine while Russia has already sent in thousands of reserves in a bid to expel the Ukrainian soldiers.
And if Ukraine wants to hold the Russian territory it has taken, it will need to build a sophisticated logistics operation to support its forces, military analysts said.
Russian commander says Ukraine’s forces pushing along the border front
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Russian commander says Ukraine’s forces pushing along the border front
- Biggest foreign attack on sovereign Russian territory since World War Two unfurled on Aug. 6 when thousands of Ukrainian troops smashed through Russia’s western border
Kenya airport strike disrupts flights
- Kenya Airways warned of delays and possible cancelations of flights for both departing and arriving passengers
- Strike would continue until the government scraps a plan to lease the airport to India’s Adani Group for 30 years
The walk-out by the Kenyan Aviation Workers Union began at midnight, disrupting flights at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
Queues of passengers were outside the airport on Wednesday, some sitting on their luggage, and there were lines of cars trying to access the area, AFP reporters said.
The union said the strike would continue until the government scrapped a plan to lease the airport to India’s Adani Group for 30 years in exchange for a $1.85 billion investment.
“The strike is on and all shifts have been suspended,” union leader Moses Ndiema told workers at the airport.
“Adani must go, that is not optional,” he said.
Kenya Airways warned of delays and possible cancelations of flights for both departing and arriving passengers.
Critics say the plan to lease JKIA to Adani will lead to job losses for local staff and rob taxpayers of future airport profits.
Freight and passenger fees from the airport account for more than five percent of Kenya’s GDP.
The Law Society of Kenya and the Kenya Human Rights Commission won a delay on the deal from the High Court on Monday, arguing that it lacked “transparency.”
Kenya’s government has defended the plan as necessary to refurbish JKIA.
It is one of Africa’s busiest hubs, handling 8.8 million passengers and 380,000 tons of cargo in 2022-23, but is often hit by power outages and leaking roofs.
Adani would add a second runway and upgrade the passenger terminal, according to the Kenya Airport Authority.
At least two dead, hundreds stranded in Thailand as floods hit north
- The adverse weather, which comes in the wake of Typhoon Yagi — the most powerful storm in Asia this year, has impacted about 9,000 households in Thailand
BANGKOK: At least two people were killed and hundreds stranded in Thailand after heavy rains swept through two northern provinces, swelling rivers, inundating settlements and triggering mudslides, authorities said on Wednesday.
The adverse weather, which comes in the wake of Typhoon Yagi — the most powerful storm in Asia this year, has impacted about 9,000 households in Thailand, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said.
“Water currents are still strong,” she told reporters. “All agencies are prepared and when the current eases, they will go in immediately.”
The impacts of the storm have killed at least 143 people in Vietnam, where it made landfall on Saturday before moving westwards, with floods forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents living near the swelling Red River in the capital Hanoi.
Thailand’s Chiang Mai province experienced flash floods and mudslides, with two deaths recorded, according to its governor.
In the Mai Sai district of neighboring Chiang Rai province, which borders Myanmar, rubber boats were unable to reach some flooded areas where hundreds were stuck and awaiting help, said district chief Narongpol Kid-an.
“Helicopters will be used to evacuate stranded residents and deliver food and water,” he told Reuters.
A resident in the main town in Mae Sai, which has a population of over 28,000, said their group of three people was trapped on the second floor of a building after rising water submerged the lower level.
“We have not eaten anything since yesterday morning,” the resident said, asking not to be named.
“It is still raining heavily in Mae Sai. We hope a rescue team or somebody will come to help us.”
Flash flood sweeps away hamlet as Vietnam storm toll rises to 141 dead
- Torrent of water buried Lang Nu hamlet with 35 families in mud and debris
- Rescuers have recovered 16 bodies and are continuing the search for about 40 others
HANOI, Vietnam: A flash flood swept away an entire hamlet in northern Vietnam, killing 16 people and leaving dozens missing as deaths from a typhoon and its aftermath climbed to 141 on Wednesday.
Vietnamese state broadcaster VTV said the torrent of water gushing down from a mountain in Lao Cai province Tuesday buried Lang Nu hamlet with 35 families in mud and debris.
Only about a dozen are known so far to have survived. Rescuers have recovered 16 bodies and are continuing the search for about 40 others.
The death toll from Typhoon Yagi and its aftermath has climbed to 141 as 69 others remain missing and hundreds were injured, VTV said.
Yagi was the strongest typhoon to hit the Southeast Asian country in decades. It made landfall Saturday with winds of up to 149 kph (92 mph) and despite weakening on Sunday, downpours have continued and rivers remain dangerously high.
Floods and landslides have caused most of the deaths, many of which have come in the northwestern Lao Cai province, bordering China, where Lang Nu is located.
Dozens arrested as Melbourne anti-war protests turn violent
- Police were pelted with rocks, horse manure and bottles filled with liquid as they tried to protect attendees of the expo
- Two dozen police officers required medical treatment and 33 people had been arrested for offenses
SYDNEY: Anti-war protesters and police clashed outside a defense exhibition in Australia’s second-largest city of Melbourne on Wednesday, with dozens arrested as police used sponge grenades, flash-bang devices and irritant sprays to control parts of the hostile crowd.
Police were pelted with rocks, horse manure and bottles filled with liquid as they tried to protect attendees of the expo, some of whom were assaulted by protesters, a Victoria state police spokesperson said in a statement. Two dozen police officers required medical treatment and 39 people had been arrested for offenses including assaulting, obstructing or hindering police, arson and blocking roads, Shane Patton Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police told a press conference.
Protesters lit fires in the street, disrupted traffic and public transport, while missiles were thrown at several police horses but no serious injuries were reported, police said.
Some police have been spat at by protesters, whilst other officers have been sprayed with a liquid irritant, some of which was identified as acid, Patton added. “This is the type of disgusting behavior that we saw today from a group who were intent on confronting us,” he said.
“If you wish to come and protest, do so peacefully. We will not tolerate criminal behavior.”
About 1,200 people attended the protest outside the venue hosting the biennial Land Forces International Land Defense Exposition, authorities said. Many chanted pro-Palestine slogans through loud speakers and waved Palestine flags while others had signs and flags representing other conflicts and causes, video showed. Dumpsters were pushed toward police lines and one protester climbed on top of a truck that was stopped at traffic lights.
Australian media reported it was the largest police operation in Melbourne since 2000 when Australia’s second-largest city hosted the World Economic Forum. About 1,000 exhibiting organizations from 31 countries are expected to attend the event through Friday, which the organizers said was Australia’s largest defense expo.
Some attendees were doused in a red liquid by protesters, ABC News reported.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said people had the right to protest but had to do it in a peaceful manner.
“You don’t say you’re opposed to defense equipment by throwing things at police. They’ve got a job to do and our police officers should be respected at all times,” Albanese told Channel Seven.
Key takeaways from the Harris-Trump presidential debate
- Republican Donald Trump and Democratic VP Kamala Harris clashed over abortion, economy, immigration and Trump’s legal woes
- Harris appeared to get under Trump’s skin with a series of sharp attacks, prompting Trump to deliver stream of falsehood-filled retorts
PHILADELPHIA: Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump met on Tuesday for their first and perhaps only debate, a square-off that could have a significant impact on the Nov. 5 election as polls show a tight race.
Here are takeaways from the debate:
RILING HER RIVAL
Harris made a point to get under Trump’s skin, as her campaign had forecast.
She urged viewers to attend a Trump rally, where she said Trump would say bizarre things such as windmills cause cancer (something he has, in fact, said) and where, she taunted, attendees would leave out of exhaustion and boredom.
Trump, who prides himself on the crowds he draws, was clearly riled.
“My rallies, we have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics,” he said. He accused Harris of busing in attendees to her rallies.
Trump then falsely claimed that immigrants in the country illegally were killing and eating people’s pets in the city of Springfield, Ohio, an unsubstantiated claim that has circulated on social media and been amplified by Trump’s vice presidential running mate JD Vance.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs! The people that came in, they’re eating the cats!” Trump said. “They’re eating the pets of the people that live there.”
City officials in Springfield have said those reports are untrue, which the ABC moderators pointed out after Trump’s comments.
“Talk about extreme,” Harris responded, laughing.
PLAYING DEFENSE
Another of Harris’ goals, as a former California prosecutor, was to call Trump out for his past actions, particularly his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
An hour into the debate, her strategy appeared to be paying off. Trump was continually on the defensive.
Asked about the Jan. 6, 2021, siege of the US Capitol, he insisted he “had nothing to do with that, other than they asked me to make a speech.” He also maintained, falsely, that he had won the 2020 election.
Harris used Trump’s actions as an argument for the country to turn the page.
“Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people, so let’s be clear about that, and clearly he is having a very difficult time processing that, but we cannot afford to have a president of the United States who attempts as he did in the past to upend the will of the voters in a free and fair election,” Harris said.
The vice president dug at Trump a little more, saying world leaders were “laughing” at him and calling him a disgrace – language that Trump has employed himself at rallies in reference to how he says other countries view President Joe Biden.
A few minutes later, Trump erupted, claiming Harris had received “no votes” in claiming the Democratic nomination and suggesting she replaced Biden as part of some sort of coup.
“He hates her,” Trump said of Biden. “He can’t stand her.”
The exchanges may have aided Harris’ argument that Trump, as she put it, lacks the “temperament” to be president.
RACIAL DIVIDE
Deep into the debate, the long-simmering topic of race came up. Trump was asked why he had publicly questioned Harris’ dual heritage as a Black and South Asian woman.
“I don’t care what she is,” he responded. “I read that she was Black. Then I read that she was not Black.”
Asked to respond, Harris accused Trump of using race to divide Americans throughout his career. She cited how he and his father turned away Black renters in the 1970s and how Trump led the public outcry against five young Black and Latino men who were wrongly convicted of assaulting a jogger in New York City’s Central Park in 1989.
More recently, he openly questioned whether President Barack Obama was a US citizen, Harris noted.
“I think it’s a tragedy that we have someone who wants to be president who has, consistently, over the course of his career, attempted to use race to divide the American people,” she said.
“I think the American people want better than that,” Harris added. “We don’t want a leader who is constantly trying to have Americans point their fingers at each other.”
Instead of trying to defend his record, Trump pivoted back to the economy and tried to pin Biden’s economic policies on Harris. “She’s trying to get away from Biden,” he said.
Harris used the attack to pitch herself again as a change agent.
“Clearly, I am not Joe Biden, and certainly not Donald Trump,” Harris said, “and what I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country.”
HANDSHAKE
Heading into the debate, there was a question as to how Harris and Trump, who have never met, would greet each other.
Harris settled the issue, definitively. She walked over to Trump at his podium, extended her hand and introduced herself as “Kamala Harris.”
It was a disarming way for Harris to approach a man who has spent weeks insulting her race and gender.
SPARRING ON THE ECONOMY
In the debate’s opening minutes, Trump and Harris went to battle on one of the issues that is top of mind for voters: the economy.
Harris detailed the economic policies she has rolled out in recent weeks, which include a substantial tax credit for small start-ups. Trump focused his comments on tariffs, saying he would protect the American economy from unfair foreign competition.
While both sides got their jabs in, Harris got to speak first on a topic where she trails Trump in terms of voter trust. She appeared to force the former president onto his back foot, and Trump essentially played defense on one of his strongest issues.
“She doesn’t have a plan” Trump said, after Harris’ opening comments. “It’s like Run, Spot, Run.”
A SCHISM ON ABORTION
The two candidates also engaged in a fractious debate about abortion, an issue where polls show Harris has the upper hand.
Trump defended the US Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling that ended constitutional protection for abortion and sent the issue back to individual states, arguing, incorrectly, that it was an outcome desired by both Republicans and Democrats. Democrats have long supported a constitutional right to abortion.
“I did a great service in doing it. It took courage to do it,” Trump said.
Trump contended that some states allow babies to be aborted after birth, a point corrected by ABC News moderator, Linsey Davis.
Harris flashed some outrage at Trump’s assertion that abortion becoming a states-rights issue was a popular result, referring to states that have passed restrictive bans.
“This is what people wanted?” Harris asked. “People being denied care in an emergency room because health care providers are being afraid of being hauled off to jail?“
Trump was asked whether he would veto a federal abortion ban if one were passed by Congress. He insisted it would never happen, but refused to answer the question definitively.
WORLDS APART
One of the most heated policy discussions came when Trump and Harris clashed over how they would handle Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
The candidates’ responses revealed the degree to which their views on America’s role in the world fundamentally differ.
Trump refused to say he wanted Ukraine to win the war, even as ABC moderator David Muir pushed him on the point, saying only that he wanted to wrap up the conflict as soon as possible.
Harris shot back, arguing that what Trump really wanted was Ukraine’s quick and unconditional capitulation.
“If Donald Trump were president, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin would be sitting in Kyiv right now,” Harris said.
'WEAPONIZED’ JUSTICE
In one heated exchange, Trump and Harris accused each other of conspiring to “weaponize” the Justice Department in a bid to go after their enemies.
Trump said the indictments he faces for conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss and for his mishandling of classified documents — as well as his conviction for forging documents related to hush money payments to a porn star — are all the result of a conspiracy cooked up by Harris and Biden. There is no evidence for that assertion.
Harris shot back by pointing out that Trump has promised to prosecute his enemies if he wins a second term.
“Understand this is someone who has openly said he would terminate, I’m quoting, terminate the Constitution,” Harris said.
The exchange underlined how Harris and Trump see the stakes of this election as existential. Both see their opponent as a threat to democracy itself.
