International
Russian army captures Stepove, key supply hub for Ukrainian forces, claims russian defense ministry
The Russian military has captured Stepove, a crucial municipality for Ukraine’s supply line in Avdiivka, a city seized 10 days ago by Russian troops. This was announced on Wednesday by the Ministry of Defense of Vladimir Putin’s government.
“On the Avdiivka front, units of the ‘Center’ group liberated the locality of Petróvskoe (Stepove for Ukrainians) and occupied more advantageous positions,” the military report states.
This municipality, located northwest of Avdiivka, allows control over the railway line that served as a supply route for Ukrainian troops in this stronghold.
Russian Government Asserts Continued Advance
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu stated yesterday that troops were continuing their advance after the capture of Avdiivka.
“After establishing control over the important enemy stronghold of Avdiivka, Russian forces continue to improve their positions in the Donetsk and Kupyansk sectors, seizing new heights and positions from the Ukrainian Army. Since the beginning of the year, 327 kilometers have been liberated from Nazi forces,” he said.
According to Shoigu, during the past week, the Russian Army has expelled Ukrainian forces from the towns of Pobeda, Lastochkine, and Severne in the Donetsk region, annexed by Russia in September 2022.
The spokesperson for the Ukrainian military group ‘Tavria,’ Dmytro Lijovi, previously confirmed the withdrawal of Kiev forces from the villages of Stepove and Severne, where, according to him, around a hundred people lived before the war.
Doubling Radar Production for the Year
On the same day, the Russian Defense Minister inspected several factories of the Russian military-industrial complex in the Tula region, 200 kilometers south of Moscow, specializing in the production of radars for the detection of artillery pieces, necessary for the war in Ukraine.
“The Strela company informed the Defense Minister that the order for 2023 for the production of Yastreb-AB and Zoopark-1M radar systems and Aistionok radars, used to detect artillery, was fully completed,” the Ministry reported on Telegram, where it also posted a video of the visit.
The company’s director, Viacheslav Chapkin, also stated in his report that the acquisition of new technical equipment and the implementation of 12-hour workdays allowed doubling the number of radars produced for 2024, with plans to quadruple production by 2025.
According to Defense, Shoigu also visited the SPLAV company, specializing in the production of missiles for various multiple launch systems, where he was shown the new facilities launched in 2023.
The renewal of this factory allowed quadrupling the volume of the main types of these missiles and even increasing the production of some models by seven times.
Zelensky: Urges Swift Arms Supply
From Tirana, where he met with governments from Southeast Europe on Wednesday, Ukrainian President urged his allies to make decisions to accelerate arms supply.
“We must survive. For that, we need concrete decisions, decisions about weapons. And those weapons must arrive on time,” he said before stressing, “We have no time or alternatives. We face a killer. With a second Hitler. Our initiative is for us to triumph over Putin.”
In recent weeks, Zelensky has traveled to various countries to seek more support and weapons amid fears that the capacity for support from allies in Europe, and especially the United States, may diminish.
In Washington, the new financial aid package for Ukraine, worth €55 billion, remains blocked due to resistance from Republicans in Congress.
International
Pope Francis meets former Gaza hostages
Pope Francis met on Thursday at the Vatican with 16 Israelis who had been held hostage in Gaza for months by the Islamist group Hamas, according to the official Vatican news website.
The group consisted of ten women, four men, and two children, as reported by the same source. Several of the former hostages showed the Argentine pontiff banners or photos of their loved ones who remain in captivity.
Francis had previously met with the families of hostages in April this year and November 2023, but this was the first time he had met with individuals who had personally endured captivity.
Since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began, the pope has repeatedly called for the immediate release of Israeli hostages, while also condemning the suffering of the Palestinian population.
The war erupted on October 7, 2023, when Islamist militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1,206 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping 251, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures that include hostages who died in captivity.
Of the kidnapped, 97 are still being held in Gaza, but the Israeli military estimates that 34 of them have died.
The military offensive launched by Israel in response has killed at least 43,736 people in the Gaza Strip, mostly civilians, according to data from the Ministry of Health in the Hamas-governed territory.
International
Israeli airstrikes on Damascus kill 15 and injure 16, including women and children
Israeli forces carried out airstrikes on residential buildings in the Syrian capital, Damascus, and its surroundings on Thursday, resulting in at least 15 deaths and 16 injuries, according to Syria’s Ministry of Defense and state television.
The ministry stated that around 3:20 p.m. local time (12:20 GMT), the Israeli military launched an aerial attack from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights, targeting several residential buildings in the Mazzeh neighborhood in western Damascus and the Qudsaya suburb to the northwest of the capital.
The airstrikes “resulted in the death of 15 people and injuries to 16 others, including women and children,” based on initial estimates, in addition to significant damage to private property and civilian buildings, the ministry added.
Meanwhile, state television reported Israeli airstrikes on three buildings in Mazzeh and another on a building in an educational complex located in a residential area of Qudsaya.
Following the strikes, loud explosions were heard throughout the city, and thick plumes of smoke could be seen rising from the targeted locations. Ambulances and emergency services rushed to the scene to attend to the victims.
International
Drug trafficker dies after boat collision with Guardia Civil Vessel in Sanlúca
Three people were on the boat that collided with a Guardia Civil vessel around midnight at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, near the Andalusian city of Cádiz, a spokesperson for the Civil Guard reported.
Two officers sustained “contusions,” the spokesperson explained.
The drug traffickers managed to bring the boat to shore, where one of them was “abandoned” severely injured. The other two fled.
The Civil Guard officers attempted to resuscitate the victim before transporting him to Sanlúcar de Barrameda, but he ultimately died early in the morning.
The other two suspects took advantage of the officers’ absence while they were taking the victim and returned to set their boat on fire.
The collision occurred very close to the site of another accident on September 1, where a drug trafficker died following a Guardia Civil pursuit.
The suspects’ boat traveled “400 meters” before crashing head-on and “at full speed” into the riverbank, where a hundred bundles of hashish were found.
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