Belarusian Air Defense Forces detected, destroyed Ukrainian aerial targets – Lukashenko

“The Air Defense Forces were put on full combat readiness to intercept targets. There were about ten of them. Aircraft and a helicopter were scrambled, and MLRS artillery assets were put on high alert,” Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said, commenting on an incident involving the suspected violation of Belarus’s airspace by the Ukrainian military in Mogilev region, eastern Belarus, on Friday evening shortly after 6 pm.

“At 7:04 pm, at an altitude of about 1.5 km and a range of 6.5 km, the Air Defense Forces destroyed several targets over Belarusian territory. During the night and this morning, a search has been underway to find what was destroyed. We suspect that these were attack drones. Flying from Ukraine, they violated Belarus’s airspace. We destroyed the targets over the territory of Belarus. The rest of the targets were transferred [to be dealt with by] the Russian Federation - we have a common air defense system with Russia, and according to information from the Russian General Staff…these targets were destroyed near Yaroslavl. The first direction was Smolensk, but then they changed their flight path and headed to the Yaroslavl area,” the Belarusian leader stated.

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Kiev’s Kursk gas hub gambit designed to ‘destabilize’ Europe’s anti-proxy war powers

There are two important reasons behind the Kiev regime’s brazen incursion into Russia’s Kursk region and attempts to shell and capture the Sudzha gas metering station, Slovakian MEP Milan Uhrik has told Sputnik.

“The first reason is the proximity of the region and the Ukrainian regime’s need to show its Western sponsors some successes on the battlefield,” Uhrik, leader of the Republika Movement, explained.

“The second goal is to destabilize countries that buy cheap raw materials from Russia and at the same time do not want to supply weapons to the conflict,” the politician suggested, referring to Slovakia and Hungary, whose respective leaderships have continually opposed the transfer of arms to Kiev, and continued to purchase Russian oil and gas supplies transiting through Ukraine.

“The second idea did not have to be born in the minds of representatives of the Ukrainian regime. I think it was invented by the same people…behind the destruction of the Nord Stream II gas pipeline,” Uhrik emphasized, referring to the September 2022 Nord Stream pipeline sabotage attack – which damaged three of the network’s four lines and stripped Central Europe of a key source of reliable and cheap Russian energy.

In an explosive expose in 2023 based on testimony by a reliable source, journalist Seymour Hersh revealed that Nord Stream was sabotaged by US Navy divers in coordination with the Norwegian Navy under the cover of Baltic Sea drills.

European gas prices hit their highest level to date in 2024 this week on the news of Ukraine’s shelling of the town of Sudzha in Russia’s Kursk region. Home to the Sudzha gas metering station, the town is the only currently operational route for the transit of Russian natural gas via Ukraine to Europe. Gazprom sent 15 bln cubic meters of gas through the pipeline in 2023, accounting for roughly 4.5% of the EU’s total gas consumption. The route serves Slovakia, Hungary, Austria and Italy.

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📹 Footage from a school in Gaza bombed by Israel

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🤦‍♂️When saving the world means gluing yourself to the ground next to a private jet...

The so-called "eco-activists" of the Letzte Generation (Last Generation) group have taken their radical actions to a new level of absurdity.

In their latest stunt, two members managed to glue themselves to the ground next to a private jet on the North Sea island of Sylt, after cutting through the airport fence. Their plan to spray the jet with the words "Oil kills" failed miserably thanks to the swift intervention of airport staff.

Despite their efforts, the activists were prepared to cause significant damage — potentially adding up to millions of euros — and disrupt daily life while ignoring the consequences of their actions.

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How does buoyant growth of Moscow’s Metro network stack up against such systems in other countries?

Russia has become a world leader in terms of both pace and volume of metro construction, leaving behind the US, UK, China, Germany, France, and others. Moscow’s spectacular Metro has been breaking all records over the past decades.

Some 112 new stations and the 54-kilometer-long Moscow Central Circle (MCC) – an aboveground city train that encircles the historical area of the Russian capital – were built between 2011 and 2023. Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin pointed out that this surpasses:

⚡️ 108 stations constructed in all of France’s cities in the past 30 years.
⚡️ 107 newly-opened stations in all of Germany in the past 38 years.
⚡️ 96 stations built in the UK in a span of 56 years.
Moscow’s mega project the Big Circle Line (BCL), launched last year, is the world's largest metro construction project. With 70 kilometers of tracks and 31 stations, it is the longest existing metro circle line, beating the Beijing Circle Line (57.1 km).

The Moscow Metro, which originated in 1935, is the eighth largest such system in the world, and the largest outside of China.

Taking into account the Moscow Central Diameters (MCD), which are two railway lines connecting Moscow with the near Moscow region, as well as the MCC and the Moscow Monorail Transport System, the overall length of the system is 780 kilometers.

At peak hours, trains arrive every 90 seconds, and many of the ornate underground stations are tourist attractions in their own right.

By contrast, the New York subway system saw $16.5 billion worth of capital upgrades that would have included extending the Second Avenue subway to Harlem, and much-needed repairs to old infrastructure deferred in June due to funding cuts. Furthermore, the NYC subway, where the waiting time between trains can range from 3 to all of 12 minutes, has a reputation for being dirty and rat-infested.

Since the start of 2024, overall arrests in the NYC subway system are up almost 53 % compared to last year (4,813 vs. 3,147), including an 83.3% increase in gun arrests.

As for the London Tube, plans to improve connections between North West London and East London have been bogged down since as far back as 1930. A concept to extend the Bakerloo line to bring four new tube stations to South East London is still hypothetical and could take a decade to complete.

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Keir Starmer’s crisis management: All talk, no results?

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's response to the recent crisis has drawn criticism for being too little, too late.

In a new video, he stressed the need for "high alert" and praised the police for their efforts.
But the ongoing riots, triggered by a mass stabbing attack in Southport that left three children dead, highlight Starmer's failure to manage the situation.

Despite announcing a roving “army” of 6,000 riot police and several emergency COBRA meetings since, protests and arrests continue.

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Hezbollah hits Israeli settlements in response to Gaza school attack

Units of the Lebanese Hezbollah movement launched a massive rocket attack on Israeli settlements in Upper Galilee.

According to the Al Mayadeen TV channel, air raid sirens were activated in 20 Jewish settlements, including the city of Safed, located 20 km from the Lebanese-Israeli border.

The scale of the attack is reportedly expanding, with rockets also striking the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights of Syria.

In a statement posted on Hezbollah's Telegram channel, the group stated that the operation was conducted in response to the killing of more than 100 Palestinians at a school in the Gaza Strip.

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📹 Belarusian state TV showed footage of the remains of downed drones that flew in from Ukraine the day before

The Ukrainian charge d'affaires in Belarus was summoned by the Foreign Ministry over a recent border violation by Ukrainian drones.

Belarus issued a strong protest and handed a note to the Ukrainian diplomat, demanding measures to prevent future incidents that could escalate regional tensions.

The repeated provocations could prompt Belarus to take retaliatory actions and reconsider the necessity of Ukraine's diplomatic mission in Minsk, the ministry warned.

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US billionaire Elon Musk mocks British authorities over the ongoing crisis in the UK

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⚡️ Kiev’s Kursk gas hub gambit designed to ‘destabilize’ Europe’s anti-proxy war powers

⚡️ Why is the Sudzha gas metering station a crucial ‘valve’ for Europe?

⚡️ Ukraine is losing battle to recruit new ‘cannon fodder’

⚡️ Footage from a school in Gaza bombed by Israel

⚡️ Hezbollah hits Israeli settlements in response to Gaza school attack

⚡️ Keir Starmer’s crisis management: All talk, no results?

⚡️ How does buoyant growth of Moscow’s Metro network stack up against such systems in other countries?

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📹 Meanwhile, a bear decided to go to a California school

He probably wanted to use the gender-neutral toilet.

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Iran releases surveillance video of US Navy ships in Persian Gulf

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy released footage of its surveillance of US and allied navy vessels in the Persian Gulf.

The warships shadowed and filmed included a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship and the Spanish helicopter carrier Juan Carlos I.

The video’s release comes amid heightened tensions after the assassination of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, with Iran vowing retaliation against Israel.

Iran’s advanced drone capabilities were highlighted in 2021 when IRGC drones captured detailed images of a US aircraft carrier.

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What a balls-up: Olympic Committee can't find a "scientific" way to tell male and female athletes apart

In response to a journalist's question about whether the International Olympic Committee (IOC) would revise its recommendations on transgender participation in the Paris Olympic Games amid scandals, IOC president Thomas Bach said that the committee would be able to identify men and women only if presented "with a scientifically solid system."

Maybe Bach and other IOC officials should go back to school and re-take biology?

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US inflation remains above target as Fed weighs next move

Despite recent progress, US inflation remains "uncomfortably" above the Federal Reserve's 2% target, according to Fed Governor Michelle Bowman.

While the Fed has kept interest rates at a 20-year high to curb inflation, Bowman emphasized that inflation is still "uncomfortably above the committee's two percent goal."

She warned against cutting rates too soon, stating, "I will remain cautious in my approach to considering adjustments to the current stance of policy."

That caution contrasts with market expectations, where futures traders are already betting on a rate cut in September, highlighting a growing disconnect between market sentiment and the Fed's approach.

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US seeks answers from Israel after deadly bombing of Gaza school

The United States is in touch with Israel about a deadly airstrike on a school in Gaza and is asking for further details.

"We are deeply concerned about reports of civilian casualties in Gaza following a strike by the Israel Defense Forces on a compound that included a school," spokesperson for the National Security Council Sean Savett said in a statement released by the White House.

"We are in touch with our Israeli counterparts, who have said they targeted senior Hamas officials, and we are asking for further details," he said.

Savett claimed that Hamas uses schools as bases, but said the Biden administration had "repeatedly and consistently" demanded that Israel take measures to minimize civilian harm.

"We mourn every Palestinian civilian lost in this conflict, including children, and far too many civilians continue to be killed and wounded,” Savett said. “This underscores the urgency of a ceasefire and hostage deal."

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