❗️Vladimir Putin expressed deep condolences to Iran's leadership for the tragic consequences of the terrorist attack in Kerman.

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🗣"You can't win this war, you can see that every day" - Oleg Soskin, advisor to former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma

"I say to these fools, the half-wits in power in Ukraine: if you can't win, who gave you the right to take the commanding heights?... Both the last days, December 2023, and the first days of 2024 show that Ukraine is helpless," the Ukrainian politician said.

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The prank wave continues...

Police were called to the home of billionaire currency speculator George Soros by a 911 caller who claimed he had just shot his wife, Southampton police told reporters. The claim was false, however, as it was the latest case of "swatting" involving a high-profile figure amid an uptick in such incidents around the holidays this year.

On Christmas Day, a number of U.S. lawmakers were scolded, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, whose home was visited by law enforcement after a man called 911 to report that he had shot and threatened to kill his girlfriend there. Similar pranks were apparently directed at three Republican state senators and one Democrat that day.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu was also visited by police on Christmas in response to a false report to the city's 311 information system that a man had tied up and shot his wife at home.

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❗️As a result of a complex negotiation process, 248 Russian military personnel were returned from territory controlled by the Kiev regime, according to Russia's MoD.

The return of Russian soldiers from captivity became possible thanks to the humanitarian mediation of the United Arab Emirates.

All released Russian military personnel are provided with the necessary medical and psychological assistance. Military aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces will transport military personnel to undergo treatment and rehabilitation in medical institutions of the Ministry of Defense.

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🇷🇺🪖 Key points of Russian MoD briefing on progress of special military op in Ukraine:

▪️In the Donetsk region, Ukrainian losses amounted to 310 soldiers;

▪️In southern Donetsk, the Russian Army repelled three attacks by Ukrainian troops;

▪️In the Kherson region, Russian forces destroyed more than 50 Ukrainian soldiers;

▪️In the Zaporozhye region, Ukrainian losses amounted to 55;

▪️Russia’s air defense systems intercepted eight Tochka-U missiles and two S-200 missiles, as well as 34 HIMARS, Alder and Vampire missiles.

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🗣 US economy is a 'massive bubble':

“If you look at the US government, they are borrowing like $3 trillion a year. And it's just not sustainable. It's just voodoo economics and it's built on the house of cards. The reason that the dollar has been doing pretty well relatively to the rest of the other currencies in the world so far is because of the high grades by the Fed...But the flip side of that is that the US is spending so much money on the interest rates. So they're paying something like $1 trillion a year just on the minimum payments on the existing debt. And when you combine that with the dedollarization efforts that are going on in the rest of the world, it's a very, very bad situation for the US,” SL Kanthan, India-based geopolitical analyst, told New Rules podcast.

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🎧 If you prefer to listen to our podcast, make sure to check the New Rules page on the website!

Key points from Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's speech on the fourth anniversary of the death of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani:

▪️The Hezbollah leader said that assassinated Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri was a great leader of jihad. He spent his life until the night of his martyrdom in jihad, resistance, work and captivity.

▪️He expressed condolences on the death of commander Qasem Soleimani and his associates and conveyed condolences to the families of those killed in Kerman.

▪️ Soleimani sought to ensure that all resistance movements were self-sufficient, relying on their capabilities and potential.

▪️The axis of resistance converges in a strategic vision - everyone clearly understands where the enemies are and where the friends are, and the goals are clearly defined.

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🗣 Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova commented on the call by the head of the Polish Foreign Ministry to transfer long-range missiles to Kiev.

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How could Hamas deputy chief's assassination affect Israeli-Palestinian crisis?

"Evidently Israel is escalating the conflict in an effort to drift attention from its domestic crises and as a desperate act to proclaim some military wins," Dr. Imad Salamey, associate professor of political science and international affairs at the Lebanese American University, told Sputnik.

On January 2, Saleh al-Arouri was killed in a drone strike in southern Beirut.

Salamey believes that Israel's assassination of al-Arouri has shifted the pattern of the Gaza war toward target killings and may "very well expand Israeli bombardments of targets in Syria to those in Lebanon."

"It is very plausible for the conflict to spillover to Lebanon at a level of higher intensity," he warned.

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🇮🇷 Iran not seeking to join WTO as enjoying membership in other regional blocs, Tehran says

"We are a [WTO] observer country, but with membership in BRICS, the SCO [Shanghai Cooperation Organization], EAEU [Eurasian Economic Union], ECO [Economic Cooperation Organization] — all of that combined equals the WTO itself! Now, we do not see the need for WTO membership," Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy Mahdi Safari told Sputnik.

Tehran's membership in the mentioned groups satisfies almost all the country's needs at the regional and global levels, the diplomat stated, adding, however, that if Iran was offered WTO membership, it would welcome such a step and agree to join the organization.

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What awaits F-16s in Ukraine's skies?

The United Kingdom has announced it will start to train the first six Ukrainian pilots for F-16 fighter jets. Western media has also claimed that several aircraft have already been handed over to Kiev.

US-made F-16 jet fighters could soon make their much-vaunted debut with the Ukrainian Air Force — but how long will they survive?

👉 Check out Sputnik's article to find out

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🇺🇸🇲🇽 US House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Wednesday that the situation at the border with Mexico is an "unmitigated disaster" of President Joe Biden's own design.

Johnson made the remarks during a trip with 60 other Republicans to the US-Mexico border to "see firsthand" the unfolding crisis.

The trip to Eagle Pass, Texas, comes as the Senate engages in negotiations in hopes of striking a bipartisan deal.

👉 Click the link to get the details

Pro-Palestinian protesters disrupt California State Capitol session, force lawmakers to take recess

📹 Footage from the scene showed dozens of demonstrators chanting "ceasefire now" as various flags and banners were hung within the main hall


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US-centric or multipolar world?

🌐 Ahead of elections in Bangladesh, Russia's Foreign Ministry warned Bangladesh that the US would attempt to orchestrate regime change there if the results don't satisfy Washington.

So, let's see why Bangladesh leans to the multipolar world order.

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Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s approval rating had been dropping throughout 2023, even before the October 7 Hamas attack; however, since the surprise attack, he has shed nearly half of his remaining support.

The vast majority of Israelis want the prime minister out of office once the Palestine-Israel conflict is over. A new poll in Israeli media found that only 15% of Israelis continue to support the politician.

👉 Hit the link to get the full rundown

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Russia's artillerymen destroy Ukrainian positions in Zaporozhye region.

📹 The combat operation of the 152-mm Msta-B howitzer is carried out with high-explosive fragmentation and updated high-precision guided artillery ammunition, which destroys the enemy at distant approaches and prevents them from transferring reserves to the line of combat contact.

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