A minute of silence in memory of those killed in the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack took place before a friendly football match in Belgrade between Serbian Crvena zvezda and St. Petersburg Zenit.

Earlier, Crvena zvezda fans called for the arena to be filled to capacity. “When our brothers are having a hard time, they should see all the possible support we can give them,” the message said.

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A 15-year-old boy helped about a hundred people get out of the building during the terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall

According to media reports, the eighth-grader's name is Islam; he worked part-time as a cloakroom attendant in the concert hall. When the shooting started, he was able not to panic, quickly find his bearings and save many lives.

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❗️ The rescue operation at the site of the Crocus Concert Hall terrorist attack has been completed, the search operation is still ongoing, said the Governor of the Moscow region Andrey Vorobyov

EU becomes legally militaristic: European funds can be spent on arms

The European Union has gone through a real militaristic revolution over the last few days as a special “legal task force” is working on allowing the use of EU funds for war, The Financial Times reports – just a couple of days after European leaders agreed to bankroll the so-called European Peace Facility (EPF) buying weapons for Ukraine.

Until now, individual EU member countries paid “donations” to the EPF fund or provided lethal weapons for Ukraine, getting their reimbursement from the body.

The aim pursued by the “legal task force” set up by the European Commission is to make it possible to use the EU’s funds for the EPF and the “Ukraine Assistance Fund” (UAF), created recently within the framework of the EPF.

This will make the flow of cash in the “money for arms” scheme created by the EU a lot easier.
The “European Peace Facility”, officially stewarded by Josep Borrell’s office, was founded in 2021, to “promote peace and prevent wars” in the EU’s proximity, primarily in Africa. In reality, it became one of the main sponsors of the ongoing conflict, funneling money into the Ukrainian military.

Since the EU was conceived as a peaceful organization, its legislation prohibits spending union funds on arms.

If the EU’s legal team’s work is successful, the EU’s Union Treaty will no longer have a provision prohibiting “any expenditure arising from operations having military or defense implications.” (Article 41, point 2 of the Treaty on European Union.) Or, at best, this provision will be removed of legal force by some new additions to European laws.

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Zelensky's accusations against Russia over the terrorist attack at Crocus Concert Hall is a self-disclosure, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

"The only head of state who managed to accuse Russia of the terrorist attack [at Crocus Concert Hall] is Zelensky. Because the guilty mind is never at ease. No curse could destroy him as powerfully as his own self-disclosing statement," she wrote on Telegram.

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The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) headquarters building was lit up with the Russian tricolour, the Russian Embassy in the UAE said

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❗️ Russia's military is repelling a massive attack on Sevastopol; tentatively, more than 10 missiles have already been shot down, the city's governor Mikhail Razvozhayev said.

A child was injured during the attack, he added.

Russian air defence systems worked over Belgorod and the Belgorod region - 10 air targets were shot down as they approached the city, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said

Russian air defence destroyed 19 Vampire MLRS shells over the Belgorod region, the Russian Defence Ministry said

Day of national mourning in Russia for the victims of the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall began

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the decision to declare mourning in a special address. He called what happened in the Moscow region a bloody, barbaric terrorist attack and promised that the "perpetrators, organizers and financiers of the attack will be justly punished".

Only the president has the right to declare a Day of Mourning in Russia. On this day, flags are lowered, entertainment events are cancelled, and TV channels refuse to advertise.

Since 1993 until the tragedy in Crocus City Hall, nationwide mourning has been declared in Russia 29 times.

Days of mourning in Russia have been declared not only in connection with terrorist attacks, but also after natural disasters, plane crashes, major accidents with a large number of victims, as well as after the death of the first president Boris Yeltsin in 2007.

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The Russian military has repelled a missile attack on the city of Sevastopol, which was the most massive in recent times, the city's governor Mikhail Razvozhayev said.

According to him, 1 person was killed and 4 injured.

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Terrorist attack on Crocus City Hall may be discussed at UN Security Council

The terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall concert venue near Moscow could be discussed at one of the upcoming meetings of the UN Security Council, UN Under Secretary General for Counter-Terrorism Vladimir Voronkov told Sputnik.

A Sputnik correspondent asked Voronkov a number of questions, including about the committee's readiness to assist Russia in investigating the terrorist attack and the possible involvement of the Islamic State (IS, a terrorist group banned in Russia) in the attack.

"As I assume, these issues will be raised and discussed at one of the upcoming meetings of the UN Security Council, which can give appropriate instructions to its Counter-Terrorism Committee," Voronkov said.

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Most Americans think WW3 is coming, but they don’t want to fight in it

According to a new YouGov poll released Thursday, most Americans, 61%, think a world war is either “very likely” (22%) or “somewhat likely” (39%) in the next 5-10 years. Only 22% of Americans think a world war is “not very likely” or “not at all likely.”

However, according to the same poll, far more Americans say they are either unfit for service or would refuse to serve if drafted than those who say they would volunteer or fight if drafted.

Most Americans of all ages, 60%, say they believe the armed services wouldn’t want them due to age or disability, and another 13% said they would refuse to go if drafted. By comparison, only 6% of Americans said they would volunteer for military service and just 9% said they would serve if called up.

Unsurprisingly, a large majority of Americans think China and/or Russia are most likely to be the US’ opponents, but more than 50% also think Iran, North Korea and Iraq will also oppose the US.

While far more Americans think the US would win against either the individual or combined forces of Russia and China than those who think the US would lose, large percentages of Americans say they are not sure who would win.

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Watch Sputnik correspondent's video of a spontaneous memorial outside the Russian Embassy in Mexico City in memory of the victims of the Crocus Concert Hall terrorist attack

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US media falsely portrays Mexican AMLO's comments as pro-cartel

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Friday during a press conference in Veracruz, that his government will not “act as policemen for any foreign government” in what he described as a “Mexico first” policy, noting “Our homes come first.”

The comments were painted by US media as López Obrador’s justification for “his refusal to confront” drug cartels in Mexico. However, the comments came after López Obrador was asked about the US Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, who recently appeared with several Mexican ministers and praised the Mexican judiciary, who is feuding with López Obrador. The reporter asked López Obrador if Salazar was interfering in Mexican affairs.

López Obrador’s comments did not downplay the opioid epidemic in the US.

“What we want is peace, tranquility in our country, no murders, no kidnappings. We are not going to act as police for any foreign government. Mexico first, our homes come first,” López Obrador said. “Of course, we do help and cooperate in the fight against drugs. Above all because it has already become a very delicate, sad humanitarian issue because a lot of young people are dying in the US because of fentanyl.”

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Textbook US stupidity: No one will believe that ISIS was behind Moscow terror attack - ex-Pentagon analyst

“The immediate suspicion of who was behind this act of terror is the US/NATO/Ukraine,” retired Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski, a former analyst for the US Department of Defense, tells Sputnik, referring to the Crocus City Hall attack near Moscow.

According to her, the conclusion can be made “given the recent increased intensity of terrorist attacks against Russian civilian and cultural centers as part of the NATO and the US proxy war in Ukraine against Russia.

“Could Ukraine independently conduct such an attack on their own, without US or NATO help or knowledge? Maybe, but in a hot war that has been in play for over two years now, it is likely that Ukraine would have needed assistance, and because the US and NATO routinely provides intelligence and targeting assistance, it will be difficult to deny without proof of innocence,” Kwiatkowski points out.

She also touches upon “an alternative explanation” of the Crocus City Hall attack, which killed at least 143 people, according to the latest information.

"Because we naturally expect Ukraine to be blamed for this – and that is the likeliest explanation – having an alternative explanation ready to go, like ‘ISIS-K* did it to get back at the Russian government for supporting Syria’ – is textbook. It is also textbook US stupidity to think anyone would believe it,” the former Pentagon analyst argues.

*ISIS (ISIL/Islamic State/IS) is a terrorist group banned in Russia and many other countries

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