Des Moines Officer Paul Parizek has stated the shooting was not random, and that an injured teacher was in serious condition

Check out the latest details!

Beloved M&M’s Mascots Gnawed to Death Amid Culture Wars Outrage Over Sexy Lesbian Candies

Remember the good old days when nobody cared about the gender, sexual preference or possible race of M&M's candies? Well, kiss 'em goodbye.

Amid a wave of culture wars criticism, Mars Inc has officially pulled its button-shaped candy mascots from marketing materials.

Click to find out more

Russia Slams US ‘Psychological Warfare’ After Lawmaker Demands Missiles for Kiev to ‘Strike Crimea’

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has blasted calls in Washington to ship long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to Kiev, calling these proposals an example of “psychological warfare.”

💬 “The signals we are sending are not being heard. Russia’s adversaries continue to raise the stakes, but the goals of the special military operation will be achieved no matter what, and all the equipment being sent [to Ukraine] in increasingly large numbers from various sources will be ground up, in the literal sense of the term,” Ryabkov said.

Read more

Brushing Off ‘Terror’ Label, Iran Says ‘Volcano of Terrorism’ Would Have Engulfed EU if Not for IRGC

Iranian officials went ballistic last week after the European Parliament recommended adding the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to the EU's official 'terrorist list'. Tehran points out that were it not for its elite warriors, Europe would have been engulfed by the "volcano of terrorism created by the Americans" in the Middle East.

Read more

‼️Latest developments indicate the adult that was struck at the Iowa school was Will Keeps, the rapper and activist who founded the program, according to Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie

Don't Shake, Senora

🇿🇲A Catholic bishop from northern Zambia has asked congregants to refrain from dancing too much and “gyrating” during mass, saying that he is concerned about some worshipers’ manner of dancing

🗣“Do not gyrate too much because at the end of the day, someone will start admiring the other and then, they will end up having thoughts which are not of worship," Bishop Benjamin Phiri said, as cited by media.

He stated that people should be cautious of how they express themselves in church, as singing and dancing there is not for entertainment purposes, and should differ from dancing at nightclubs.

The woman in the video certainly doesn’t appear to be following the bishop’s advice

Subscribe to @sputnik_africa

What is the Leopard 2 Tank and Why is Its Possible Delivery to Kiev So Explosively Contentious?

What's with all the hooplah about the possible deployment of German Leopard 2 main battle tanks in Ukraine? What's so special about this piece of armor? What are its characteristics? And how would it stack up in a firefight with a Russian T-90?

Click here to find out

‼️Police: At Least 7 Killed After Two Shootings in California's Half Moon Bay, Suspect in Custody

The San Mateo County Sheriff's Office has stated that four victims were initially found dead at about 2:22 p.m. local time, but that an additional three victims were discovered at a separate crime scene in the area.

Another individual was hospitalized at the Stanford Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.

Read More

💬 "Looking at what Meta* is doing here, it's actually the social media arm of the State Department effectively saying, they've been incorporated into the military. Well, yes, there is a significant far-right fascist neo-Nazi force in the Ukrainian military that's been known for many years now," says Chris Garaffa, a technologist and cohost of the CovertAction Bulletin podcast.

*Meta is banned in Russia over extremist activities

🎧 Listen to more of Garaffa's analysis in our podcast Fault Lines: NATO in Brussels, Belmarsh Tribunal, GA Trooper Kills Protestor

US 'Not Prepared' for War With China, Claims Think Tank Funded by Arms Industry

The US has so thoroughly depleted its military supply reserves that it’s “not adequately prepared” for a long-term war with China, a leading American military-industrial complex think tank claimed Monday.

A war games simulation conducted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) reportedly found that the US would be likely to deplete its supply of long-range, precision-guided missiles in under a week of “protracted conventional war” against China in the Taiwan Strait.

Read more

Ukrainian Conflict to Cost German Economy $190Bln, 4.5% of GDP in 2023, Study Says

The German economy will lose an estimated 175bln euros ($190 bln) or 4.5% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2023 due to the consequences of the Ukrainian conflict, according to a study by the German Economic Institute (IW).

"New calculations of IW quantify the losses that can be expected as early as in 2023. According to those, the cost of the war in Ukraine and all related economic threats will amount to some 175 billion euros. Adjusted for price changes, it accounts for around 4.5% of the GDP," the statement read.

Learn more

Venezuela Supports Idea to Create Regional Currency, Says Maduro

"Venezuela is ready and we support the initiative to create a Latin American and Caribbean currency," Maduro said during a march in Caracas against blockade and sanctions.

Earlier, the leaders of Brazil and Argentina said such talks were under way.

Learn more

Macron's Erratic Military Policy Shows Lack of Vision, Expert Says

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced a huge boost to military spending after years of advocating for cuts to the defense budget, a move that shows the president's lack of vision, Francois Asselineau, a French political expert and former presidential candidate, told Sputnik.

Read more

US Media Gives Thoughts on Where Abrams Tanks Should Be Delivered Instead of Ukraine

A US newspaper has reported that Washington should consider sending the US M1 Abrams main battle tanks to Taiwan rather than Ukraine because the move would comply with the White House’s geopolitical factors.

The newspaper described Ukraine as “a case study in the failure of deterrence”, arguing that Taiwan is “much more important” to the US’s “security and prosperity.”

Read more

🇸🇿🇷🇺 Early start for Sergey Lavrov's press pool in Mbabane, Eswatini today. Russian delegation is already at the talks with Eswatini officials. We are expecting statements from both sides later on during the day. Meanwhile I'm sharing with you some beatiful Mbabane views from the Cabinet of Ministers compound and my first impressions from visiting the Kingdom. Stay tuned for more, subscribe to @BolotskySputnik.

🇫🇮 The head of the Finnish Foreign Ministry said that negotiations between Finland and Sweden with Turkey on NATO membership need to be paused.

▪️ He also noted that Helsinki may consider applying to NATO without Sweden.

🤔 Helsinki and Stockholm filed a joint application to join the alliance, but now, amid the deterioration of relations between Sweden and Turkey, the Finnish diplomat believes that "the situation needs to be assessed."

Key Ally Slams Swedish Government for 'Indulgence Toward Islamist Forces'

National-conservative Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Akesson has unleashed harsh criticism against the government’s handling of the diplomatic crisis that ensued following the Quran burning that took place in Stockholm over the past weekend.

Following the inflammatory protest by Hard Line party leader Rasmus Paludan that occurred opposite the Turkish embassy, Swedish government officials rushed to mend fences with Ankara, condemning the deed.

Learn more

📹 Russia's MoD has published footage showing a sortie of Russian Aerospace Forces Su-25 ground-attack fighters

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️🇷🇺Russia has agreed to an earlier request by 🇧🇷Brazil to swap its 2025 presidency in BRICS with Brasilia in order to give the Latin American nation free reins to host the G20 summit in 2024 without having to also preside over the regional economic bloc that year, the Russian Foreign Ministry told Sputnik on Tuesday.

🇸🇿🇷🇺 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has met with Eswatini's Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Thuli Dladla

Subscribe to @sputnik_africa

❗️ Poland requests permission from Germany to supply Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine – Defense Ministry