Dec 30 Shelling kills 21 in Russian city of Belgorod after Moscow's mass aerial attack on Ukraine By Associated Press Shelling in the center of the Russian border city of Belgorod killed 21 people, including two children, local officials reported. Russian authorities accused Kyiv of carrying out the attack, which took place the day after an 18-hour aerial bombardment across Ukraine killed… Continue reading
Dec 30 Airstrikes hit central Gaza camps as U.S. moves ahead with new weapons sale to Israel By Wafaa Shurafa, Samy Magdy, Abby Sewell, Associated Press Israeli warplanes struck two urban refugee camps in central Gaza on Saturday, as the Biden administration approved a new emergency weapons sale to Israel despite persistent international cease-fire calls over mounting civilian deaths, hunger and mass displacement in the enclave. Continue reading
Dec 30 Serbian opposition marches in Belgrade as protests against election irregularities continue By Jovana Gec, Associated Press Thousands of people rallied in Serbia’s capital on Saturday, chanting “Thieves!” and accusing the populist authorities of President Aleksandar Vucic of orchestrating a fraud during a recent general election. Continue reading
Dec 30 Russia demands evidence that one of its missiles crossed through Poland's airspace By Associated Press Russia will not provide any explanations about an unidentified object that briefly entered Poland’s airspace until it receives evidence that shows the object was a Russian missile, Russia’s top diplomat in Poland said Saturday. Continue reading
Dec 29 Watch 5:57 News Wrap: Israel widens offensive in central Gaza after flattening much of the north In our news wrap Friday, Israeli forces widened their offensive on the central Gaza strip after flattening much of the north, landslides triggered by heavy rain in eastern Congo have killed at least 20 more people, forecasters warn of high… Continue watching
Dec 29 Watch 2:49 Russia launches one of its biggest air attacks on Ukraine in nearly 2 years of war By Stephanie Sy, Solveig Rennan Russia unleashed a massive, 18-hour aerial assault on Ukraine, killing at least 30 people and wounding more than 140 others. The barrage comes as Ukrainian officials are urgently pleading for more air defense systems from their Western allies. Stephanie Sy… Continue watching
Dec 29 An associate of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is sentenced to 9 years in prison By Associated Press Ksenia Fadeyeva, a regional legislator who headed a local branch of Navalny's organization in the Siberian city of Tomsk, was convicted and sentenced on Friday on charges of organizing an extremist group. Continue reading
Dec 29 World population up 75 million this year, standing at 8 billion on Jan. 1 By Mike Schneider, Associated Press The U.S. added 1.7 million people and will have a population on New Year's Day of 335.8 million people. If the current pace continues through the end of the decade, the 2020s could be the slowest-growing decade in U.S. history. Continue reading
Dec 29 The Biden administration once again bypasses Congress on an emergency weapons sale to Israel By Matthew Lee, Associated Press Such determinations are rare, but not unprecedented, when administrations see an urgent need for weapons to be delivered without waiting for lawmakers' approval. Continue reading
Dec 29 Russian poet receives 7-year prison sentence for reciting verses against war in Ukraine By Associated Press The OVD-Info rights group says that between late February 2022 and earlier this month, nearly 20,000 people in Russia have been detained for speaking out against the war. Continue reading