Obligations to investigate the egregious terrorist attack on the Nord Stream pipelines under international treaties are not being fulfilled despite Russia's repeated appeals, Russian FM spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Sputnik.

Key statements on the issue by Zakharova:

▪️ Switzerland, where Nord Stream’s operating company is registered, has not even tried to investigate the attack, she stressed.

▪️ Germany, where the pipelines’ end point is located, has not reported a single positive result of the investigation into the terrorist attack.

▪️ Russia has formally filed pre-trial claims against Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland under a number of terrorism conventions in connection with the investigation into the Nord Stream terrorist attacks, and other countries that may have been involved in the attack are next in line, the spokeswoman noted.

▪️ Russia firmly intends to look to identify and bring to justice all perpetrators of the terrorist attacks on the pipelines, and the West's attempts to “sweep the case under the rug” will not be accepted, Zakharova said.

On Wednesday, German media stated that the operation to blow up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines cost about $300,000 and was funded by private sources. According to reports, several people, mostly civilians, took part in the operation, organized by a former Ukrainian security service agent, Roman Chervynsky.

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⚡️ Wave of airstrikes on Beirut: check out the latest on the Israel-Lebanon escalation

⚡️ VIDEO: Protest in Sydney against the Misinformation Bill, which critics warn would enable the government to crack down on free speech

⚡️ Kamala Harris visits the border with Mexico – for the first time in 3 years

⚡️ The Clintons and BlackRock: a long history of mutually-beneficial cooperation.

⚡️ Russia files pre-trial claims against Germany in connection with the Nord Stream blast probe

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Netherlands transferring its 70s-vintage F-16s to Ukraine to ‘fight the Russians’: defense minister

Six Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16s made one final flyover over the country on Friday in a farewell flight before their formal retirement, with 24 of the jets ultimately expected to make their way to Ukraine to take part in the NATO proxy war against Russia. Eighteen others will be transferred to a training center in Romania.

“Today, the Ministry of Defense officially said goodbye to the legendary aircraft. After 45 years of faithful service and numerous missions, the aircraft will receive a new life in Ukraine and Romania,” Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans said, adding that the former will help Kiev “fight the Russians.”

Flying out of Volkel Air Base in the country’s south, the six jets proceeded at altitudes as low as 400 meters past the Leeuwarden, Woensdrecht, Gilze-Rijen and Eindhoven bases. One of the jets sported special 45h anniversary ‘Farewell Falcon’ markings on its tail.

Over the past three decades, the Netherlands actively used its F-16s in support of US wars of aggression across the globe, from Yugoslavia, Iraq and Afghanistan, to Libya, Mali and Syria.

Offloading its F-16s, the Dutch Air Force is left with Lockheed Martin F-35 fighters, bought from the US in 2013. Deliveries of the plane began in 2019.

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❗️The IDF has announced that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in yesterday’s airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was targeted at the group’s main headquarters located in Beirut’s southern suburbs, a stronghold referred to as Dahiyeh, the Israel Defense Forces claimed.

The IDF says the headquarters is situated underground, beneath residential buildings in Dahiyeh.

In addition to Nasrallah, the commander of Hezbollah’s Southern Front, Ali Karaki, and other commanders were killed, the IDF stated.

Hezbollah has still not confirmed whether its leader was eliminated.

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📹 ‘It’s all about control’: Australian politician explains why he opposes the proposed Law on Misinformation

A demonstration is taking place in Sydney, Australia against the Misinformation and Disinformation Bill proposed by the Labor Party led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

If approved, it would allow the Australian government to fine digital platforms up to 5% of their annual turnover for not censoring so-called “misinformation.”

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A Russian Iskander-M missile strike destroyed ammunition depots for Ukrainian missile systems on the territory of the Yuzhmash plant in Dnepropetrovsk – Russia’s Defense Ministry

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Contact with Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has been "lost" since Friday evening, according to an unnamed source close to the movement, as reported by Israeli media.

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Ex-British PM comes clean about ‘nutty’ secret plan to invade Holland during COVID-19 pandemic

Boris Johnson has confessed he nurtured a secret plan to send the British Army on a raid into Holland at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

The former British prime minister spilled the beans in his new tell-all book Unleashed, excerpts of which are being released by UK media.
With global supplies dwindling, the EU had stowed five million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine at a warehouse in Leiden in March 2021.

After “futile” talks with EU chiefs to secure the release of the doses, Johnson mulled sending British special forces “to launch an aquatic raid” into the Netherlands to “take that which was legally ours.”
The clandestine operation would have involved using inflatable boats to navigate Dutch canals.

The plan was “certainly feasible,” his then-deputy chief of the defense staff, Lt Gen Doug Chalmers, told Johnson. But Chalmers pointed out that if detected, the UK would have some explaining to do as to “why we are effectively invading a longstanding NATO ally.”

“Of course, I knew he was right, and I secretly agreed with what they all thought, but did not want to say aloud: that the whole thing was nuts,” Johnson concluded.

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❗️The Russian Armed Forces carried out a group strike using long-range precision weapons, including a hypersonic aeroballistic Kinzhal missile and attack drones, targeting the airfield infrastructure of Ukrainian militants, the Ministry of Defense stated.

🇷🇺🪖More statements from the Russian Defense Ministry's daily briefing on the special military operation's progress:

◻️ Ukraine lost up to 400 militants in the Russian Zapad Battlegroup's combat zone.

◻️ Units of the Russian Yug Battlegroup secured more advantageous positions, and Ukraine lost up to 725 militants.

◻️ Ukrainian losses in the Russian Tsentr Battlegroup's combat zone amounted to over 620 militants.

◻️ Russian air defense forces hit four HIMARS rockets and 43 Ukrainian drones.

◻️ The Russian Vostok Battlegroup improved its forward positions, and Ukraine lost up to 125 militants.

◻️ Ukraine lost over 60 militants in the Russian Sever Battlegroup's combat zone.

◻️ Ukraine's losses amounted to up to 60 militants in the Russian Dnepr Battlegroup's combat zone.

◻️ Russian forces struck concentrations of Ukrainian manpower and equipment in 131 areas within the special operation zone.

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🗳 Why is voter ID controversial in the US?

As of April 2024, only 36 states required voters to present some form of identification in order to vote in the US presidential election on November 5. Of these states, 24 require identification containing a photograph. In the remaining states and Washington, DC, no form of ID is requested to vote. Accepted forms of ID vary, and can be state or federal government-issued driver’s licenses or passports, student IDs, as well as military, public assistance, and tribal cards. Some states allow voters to sign affidavits verifying their identities and proof of US citizenship if they do not have ID.

Why does voter ID remain a contentious issue in the US?

◻️ Supporters argue that voter ID can stop voter fraud, including in-person voter impersonation, and prevent non-citizens from casting ballots.

◻️ Americans across all demographics support requiring voters to show photo identification in order to vote, a 2021 Monmouth University poll showed.

◻️ Opponents argue that the burdensome process may disenfranchise low-income Americans, racial and ethnic minorities, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Such voters cannot afford or obtain the “underlying documents that are a prerequisite to obtaining government-issued photo ID card," according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

As the US presidential election draws nearer, the issue has been widely debated on social media. Many have noted that unlike the US, virtually all of Europe and almost all developed countries require in-person voters to provide photo IDs to vote. Tesla billionaire Elon Musk drew attention to the uptick in immigrant naturalizations under the Biden administration in a recent tweet, adding the caption: “They are importing voters.”

Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump has accused Biden of streamlining the path to US citizenship for political gain. Naturalized voters account for about 10% of the US electorate, according to the Pew Research Center. A National Partnership for New Americans poll this month showed that about 54% of respondents would vote for Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris.

*The image is AI-generated

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🇮🇷 Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s statement on recent Israeli attacks on Lebanon:

◻️ The massacre of defenseless people in Lebanon has once again exposed the vicious nature of the rabid Zionist regime for everyone to see, while also proving the short-sightedness and foolish policies of the leaders of this usurping regime.

◻️ The terror gang ruling the Zionist regime has not learned from its criminal year-long war in Gaza. They have failed to realize that the mass killing of women, children, and civilians cannot weaken the strong structure of the resistance or bring it to its knees. Now, they are trying the same foolish tactics in Lebanon.

◻️ The Zionist criminals should know that they are far too insignificant to inflict any serious damage on the strong foundation of Hezbollah in Lebanon. All the resistance forces in the region stand by Hezbollah and support it. The fate of this region will be determined by the resistance forces, with Hezbollah standing proudly at the forefront.

◻️ The people of Lebanon have not forgotten how, in the past, the soldiers of the usurping regime once marched all the way to Beirut, only to have Hezbollah cut their advance short, lifting Lebanon up with honor and pride. Today as well, by the grace and power of God, Lebanon will make the evil, aggressive and disgraced enemy regret its actions.

◻️ It is the duty of all Muslims to stand with the people of Lebanon and the proud Hezbollah, using whatever resources they have, and assist them in confronting the oppressive, usurping and wicked regime.

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The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force in Lebanon was killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut, Iran's Mehr News Agency reports

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