The families of Colombian mercenaries killed in Ukraine may file a lawsuit against Kiev over the loss of their relatives' bodies, a widow of one of the families told Sputnik.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukrainian forces are forced to expose different sections of the front near Kharkov due to the expenditure of forces on the attack on Russia's Kursk region, the head of the Russian administration of the Kharkov region, Vitaly Ganchev, told Sputnik.

It is possible, he added, that mercenaries in the Kharkov region "cover holes in the defense" that arose due to the transfer of forces of Ukrainian troops.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

The US top diplomat who couldn’t: Blinken fails to clinch Gaza ceasefire deal

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has essentially confirmed this week that he does not have what it takes to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and peacefully resolve the latest escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The decision by US President Joe Biden to sell weapons to the tune of $20 billion dollars to Israel, made shortly prior to Blinken’s trip, might have had a detrimental effect on Washington’s peacemaking efforts, the Wall Street Journal suggests.

Sputnik has looked into the chronology of Blinken’s Middle East tour:

🔹 On August 19, Blinken traveled to Israel and met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During the visit the US top diplomat claimed that Netanyahu accepted the “bridging proposal” meant to help Hamas and Israel finally reach a ceasefire.

🔹 On August 20, Blinken visited Egypt where he held talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Egypt’s head of state promptly told Blinken that the time is nigh to end the Gaza War and warned him about the consequences of this conflict spreading across the region.

🔹 That same day Blinken headed to Qatar to meet with Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, though due to the latter feeling unwell, the meeting did not take place and they talked over the phone instead. Blinken also met with Qatar’s Minister of State Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi who confirmed Doha’s commitment to help mediate the Gaza conflict resolution.

🔹 On August 21, Blinken held phone conversation with Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan about his Mideast trip and efforts to broker the much-sought-after ceasefire in Gaza.

That said, no ceasefire or peace agreement was attained during or after Blinken’s voyage across the Middle East, with the fighting in Gaza continuing unabated.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

💬Ukraine, like the banned IS, has terrorist schemes in its arsenal, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Sputnik.

Zaporozhye and Kursk nuclear power plants are objects of criminal terrorist acts of the Kiev regime, she added.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators burn the US flag on the last day of the ongoing Democratic National Convention in Chicago

The "Brat" flag, representing the Charli XCX music album and used as a symbol of Kamala Harris' campaign, was also burned by protesters.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukrainian forces occupy illegal combat posts in residential zones

The American private military company, Forward Observation Group, which published photos of its fighters in the Kursk region, posted a photo of a mortar crew taking combat position next to a children's playground.

It was not specified where and when this photo was taken at a typical post-Soviet building, but judging by the young foliage, it can be assumed that the picture was taken in spring.

Russia regularly points out that Ukraine is taking up combat positions near residential buildings. This is a gross violation of international humanitarian law.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📹 Another bites the dust

Аn enemy tank effectively eliminated by a Lancet loitering munition on the borders of the Kursk region.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Here we go again: Ukraine 'invites' Russia for another so-called peace conference

The head of Zelensky's office, Andrei Ermak, reiterated the possibility of inviting a representative of Russia to a new "peace" conference on Ukraine.

According to Ermak, who gave an interview to India Today, following the results of the first conference, a settlement plan will be developed for presentation to Russia at the second conference.

Moscow has repeatedly stated that Russia does not accept ultimatums and is not going to participate in such events.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️The hostage situation in a penal colony in Russia's Volgograd region occurred during a meeting of the disciplinary commission, the Federal Penitentiary Service told Sputnik.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

⚡️Prisoners of colony No. 19 in the Russian Volgograd region have taken hostages, the Federal Penitentiary Service told Sputnik.

The hostage-taking in the colony in the Volgograd region occurred during a meeting of the disciplinary commission.

At the moment, measures are being taken to free the hostages, the Federal Penitentiary Service informed.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

The Russian MS-21 aircraft performed a runaway aerobatic maneuver in preparation for a demonstration flight, the Rostec press service reported. 

This maneuver is used in combat aviation, and its performance ability is ensured by the reliability of its design, perfect aerodynamics, and control system, the state corporation noted.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Four injured employees of the Federal Penitentiary Service were hospitalized after being taken hostage in the colony in Surovikino, Russia's Volgograd region, its governor said.

He also added that an operational headquarters was set up to coordinate the work on the release of hostages from the colony.

Law enforcement forces and agencies are carrying out operational measures, and there is no threat to the civilian population, the head of the region stressed.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

What's behind Indian PM Modi's trip to Ukraine amid Kursk aggression?

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Kiev for talks with Volodymyr Zelensky. Ahead of the visit the Indian PM said he was planning to share "perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing Ukraine conflict".

Sputnik reached out to Indian political and military experts to discuss Modi's trip.

💬 Sudheendra Kulkarni, a former aide to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee: "In trying to end the war in Ukraine, Modi should keep in mind that the main source of the problem was Western powers' design to expand NATO, and bring it to the borders of Russia. India must never support this."

💬 Retired Air Marshal M Matheswaran: "I believe that the prime minister will ask Zelensky to sit on the negotiating table to end the conflict, there’s no doubt about that. What meaning Zelensky will make of the Prime Minister’s advice needs to be seen," he said, warning that Zelensky cannot be trusted.

💬 Defense analyst and author Pravin Sawhney: "In a strategic sense, India gains nothing out of this visit," he said, stressing that it comes during Ukraine's aggression against Russia's Kursk region and Russia's rapid advance in Donbass. To complicate matters further, "Russia has made it very clear that Zelensky is not the legal president of Ukraine any more. His term has already expired," the pundit added.

💬 Retired Brigadier V Mahalingam: "Without the West’s participation and direct endorsement, the Ukraine war would have never happened." He added that the path to peace in Ukraine goes through Washington, not Kiev. "If US and the West are truly peace loving, why don’t they talk directly to Moscow and work out a peace deal that will safeguard the interests of both Russia and Ukraine?"

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt