One of the search and rescue teams reached the site of the hard landing of Raisi’s helicopter, local media has reported, citing the head of the Iranian Red Crescent.

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The Russian Army broke through Ukrainian defenses in the Pologovsky area and advanced up to one and a half kilometers towards the city of Gulyaypole in the Zaporozhye region, Vladimir Rogov, a senior official of the Russian-appointed Zaporozhye regional administration, told Sputnik.

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Russia in world’s top-ten economies since start of century

The Russian economy has ranked tenth among the world's major economies when it comes to growth in US dollars since the beginning of the 21st century, a Sputnik analysis of data from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank has shown.

Russia's GDP has grown 7.7 times over the past 23 years, increasing to more than $2 trillion dollars from $260 billion at the end of the last century, according to the analysis.

On Friday, the Washington Post reported that Russia has been successful in it's efforts to build “a sustainable economy” amid the ongoing special military operation. The newspaper also mentioned the futility of Western sanctions, which “have failed to collapse Russia’s economy.”

Ethiopia, which joined BRICS earlier this year, has grown the fastest since the beginning of the century: its economy has increased 19.4 times to $160 billion. Then comes China whose GDP has grown 14.6 times over to $17.7 trillion.

Japan, a member of the G7, is the only country that has shown a decrease in GDP in dollar terms since the beginning of the century. Its economy shrank by 15% to $4.2 trillion, compared to $5 trillion at the end of last century.

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The chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces announced the need to use all available forces of the army, armed forces and police to find the Raisi helicopter, according to the Iranian Fars news agency

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Four out of ten Germans want to cut Ukraine spending – survey

At least 40% of German citizens wish to see the amount of money sent to the Kiev regime cut, a survey by INSA Institute has revealed. Expenditure on the Ukrainian Army is the area that most respondents want to see wound down. The second budget item German people wish to be cut is migrant allowances.

Earlier, German media reported that the Bundeswehr asked for an additional $4.13 billion for Ukraine while next year this sum may grow almost fourfold and reach a whopping $16.3 billion. Berlin's Ministry of Finance admitted that the government is lacking crucial funds to finance these expenditures. Nevertheless, Minister of Finance Christian Lindner has backed the Bundeswehr’s bid for additional funds.

Russian officials have repeatedly stressed that no amount of military spending on Ukraine will have any effect on the special operation’s outcome – and lately, this idea has been becoming more and more obvious to the West. However, the US and their allies continue to sponsor the agonizing Kiev regime, trying to drag the conflict out for as long as possible, which only leads to more casualties in Ukraine and more economic hardship across the Western world.

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📹 Darkness and rain have complicated the search for the helicopter carrying Iranian President Raisi; it is impossible to get to the emergency site, Iran's Tasnim news agency reports.

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How is power distributed in Iran?

▪️Supreme Leader: The most powerful position is held by the supreme leader, currently Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The supreme leader is the highest secular and religious authority in the country, holding sway over the Iranian government, military and judiciary.

▪️President: The president, currently Ebrahim Raisi, is the second highest-ranking official. The president carries out the decrees, and answers to the Supreme Leader. Unlike the executive in other countries, the president of Iran does not have full control over the government.

▪️Vice President: Currently Mohammad Mokhber is first vice president. According to Article 131, the first vice president takes over as acting president if the president in incapacitated, but only if permitted by the supreme leader. According to the same article, the first vice president (or anyone serving as acting president) must make sure that a new president is elected within fifty days.

▪️Guardian Council: This 12-member body, half appointed by the supreme leader and half by the judiciary, vets candidates for office and can veto legislation.

▪️Assembly of Experts: An 88-member body of clerics elected by the public, this assembly has the power to appoint and dismiss the supreme leader.

▪️Parliament (Majlis): The elected legislative body can draft laws, but its decisions can be overridden by the Guardian Council.

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Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei, in his first statement after the emergency, expressed hope that Raisi survived the helicopter's "hard landing"

We hope that Almighty God will return the respected and honorable president and his companions to the arms of the nation. Everyone should pray for the health of this group of servants. If the people of Iran do not worry, there will be no disruption in the work of the country.

Quote published by Tasnim News in X (formerly Twitter)

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Tor-M2: Russian air defense system that renders Western cruise missiles impotent

The staggeringly low success rate of Ukrainian strikes into Russian territory serves as testament to the quality and efficiency of Russia’s air defenses.

The Tor-M2 is one such weapon that turned out to be particularly handy in shooting down whatever the Kiev regime forces lob at Russian troops. It is a short-range surface-to-air missile system designed by Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant Kupol, a subsidiary of Russian defense manufacturer Almaz-Antey.

Tor-M2 is capable of engaging and destroying virtually any type of airborne target such as combat aircraft and helicopters, rockets, cruise and ballistic missiles, and precision-guided munitions, as well as reconnaissance and strike drones.

These short-range air defense systems, each of which is equipped with 16 surface-to-air missiles, are usually deployed to protect troop formations and armored units from airborne attacks or to defend various key installations.

In a recent interview with Russian media, one Tor-M2 unit commander said that probably the most difficult target he had to deal with were Storm Shadow and SCALP cruise missiles provided to Ukraine by the UK and France, which the regime in Kiev launches from Su-24 bomber aircraft at civilian targets in Russia.

The commander noted, however, that even though these low-flying missiles are difficult to intercept, “difficult” does not mean “impossible.”

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Contact established with one of the passengers and one of the crew members of the helicopter carrying the Iranian president after it crashed, according to Iran’s Vice President

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Russia is ready to provide aid in searching for Iranian president's helicopter missing in Iran, the Russian FM spokeswoman told Sputnik.

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The Red Crescent denied local media reports that a helicopter carrying the president had been discovered.

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Yaghoub Soleimani, secretary general of the Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran, told Sputnik about the search and rescue operation

“Local conditions in the area where the helicopter carrying the president and foreign minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran made a hard landing are difficult to navigate, there is heavy fog, it is raining and there are vegetation features,” he said.

"Unfortunately, night has already fallen and the rescue forces are trying their best. Red Crescent Rapid Response Teams, as well as other groups including the IRGC, Basij [Iranian paramilitary force] and army, joined forces and were deployed in the region. As a rule of thumb, the first 3-4 hours are the golden hours, but given the weather conditions of the area, these figures vary somewhat. We hope to hear good news soon."

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Japan's Hiroshima, Nagasaki lodge protest over recent US subcritical nuclear test

The administrations of Japan's Hiroshima and Nagasaki prefectures, which came under the US atomic bombing during the WWII, have lodged a protest to Washington over the recent subcritical nuclear experiment at the Nevada National Security Site.

"Such a conduct is totally unacceptable as it betrays the wishes of the hibakusha [victims of the US atomic bombings in Japan] who have been appealing that 'no one else should suffer as we have,' and millions of others who seek the abolition of nuclear weapons. On behalf of the atomic-bombed city of Hiroshima, I vehemently protest and demand that all future nuclear tests be cancelled," Hiroshima City Mayor Matsui Kazumi said in his letter to Joe Biden and US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel on Saturday.

On August 6 and 9, 1945, the US dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Around 220,000 people — mostly civilians — were killed in the attacks and 200,000 more died from deadly radiation exposure.

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Rescuers are approaching the suspected crash site of the Iranian president's helicopter, according to media, citing the Iranian Red Crescent

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▪️The latest on Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter crash

▪️How is power distributed in Iran?

▪️Tor-M2: Russian air defense system that renders Western cruise missiles impotent

▪️Four out of ten Germans want to cut Ukraine spending

▪️Russia in world’s top-ten economies since start of century

▪️Germany can supply Ukraine with weapons, but does not want them to attack Crimea

▪️Mobilization threatens to put Ukraine's biggest smelter out of work

▪️UK may unveil verdict on Assange's extradition to US on Monday

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The helicopter that crashed with the Iranian president on board was an American Bell 412, AP reports.

What is known about this machine:

▪️It is a mass model but quite old in its design;

▪️It is an improved version of the Bell 205, and the 205, in turn, is a modified civilian version of the utilitarian army helicopter Bell UH-1 Iroquois from the Vietnam War;

▪️It can carry eight to nine passengers on board alongside two pilots. The maximum take-off weight is 5 tons, and the flight altitude is 5.3 thousand meters;

▪️Its engine is reliable: if it is properly maintained, there should be no problems;

▪️At one time, Iran had about 10-12 such helicopters.

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There is currently no information about the exact location of the helicopter carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister, Sputnik's correspondent Shiva Abshenas reports from the national emergency headquarters of the Iran's Red Crescent Society.

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The exact location of the helicopter carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister has been identified and a signal from the phone of one of the crew members has been received from there, Tasnim News Agency quoted IRGC as saying

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The Turkish Defence Ministry said it had provided Iran with an Akıncı drone and a helicopter with a night vision system to take part in the search for the helicopter carrying Iranian President Raisi

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Israel risks a ‘military coup’ and creation of Palestinian state in its biggest crisis ever - expert

Israeli War Cabinet Minister and former Army General Benny Gantz threatened to resign unless Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepts his plan for the resolution of the Gaza conflict. The plan in question involves the demilitarization of the enclave and the creation of a multinational civilian administration.

While Gantz set the deadline for this plan at June 8, Netanyahu claimed that accepting these demands would end in a defeat for Israel.

Commenting on the conundrum, Tel Aviv-based international relations expert Dr. Simon Tsipis explains that Gantz’s plan would ultimately result in the creation of a Palestinian state, which is unacceptable for Zionist factions currently controlling the government.

Netanyahu thus finds himself in quite a predicament as giving concessions to Gantz and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who urged Netanyahu to declare that Israel has no plans to establish military control over Gaza, would cause Zionist leaders like Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir to pull out of the coalition, and vice versa.

“This is clearly the biggest crisis in Israel’s history,” Dr. Tsipis remarks, arguing that the Israeli government now finds itself on the brink of collapse.

He also highlights another aspect of the problem: both Gantz and Gallant are former Israeli generals.

“There may be a risk of a military coup, because if Gantz and Gallant – they are former generals and former heads of the general staff – if they decide to seize power and call upon their former colleagues, then this move would mean a military coup in Israel, the ouster of Benjamin Netanyahu by convincing him to relinquish his power,” Dr. Tsipis speculates.

Whether he makes concessions to Gantz or not - either way, Netanyahu may be looking at the collapse of his government and the end of his political career, he stresses.

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