❗️ Netanyahu stalling to derail Gaza deal - official

Mediators in Qatar and Egypt are now working hard to reach an agreement before Trump's inauguration, but the problem for the talks is posed by the Israeli side, Mashour Abdel Halim, a member of Hamas' political leadership, told Sputnik Arabic.

"The problem is that Netanyahu is trying to stall and impose new conditions to thwart efforts to reach an agreement. But any prisoner swap deal must lead to an end to the aggression in Gaza, the return of displaced people and a guarantee of humanitarian aid," he said.

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⚡️ Azerbaijani President: Turkiye base is not necessary in the country

Media reports about Turkiye's alleged plans to establish a military base in Azerbaijan are political speculations, as there is no need for its creation, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev told VGTRK and RIA Novosti on Wednesday.

"Taking into account that such information appears from time to time in some media, I must say that there is no necessity [to establish a Turkish base]," Aliyev said.

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🗓 Starliner crew stranded on ISS will not return to Earth until March 2025

SpaceX Crew-10 with crew will go to the ISS in late March 2025, and it will also return the Starliner crew, NASA said.

🔄 Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who originally went on an 8-10 day trip to the space station via the Boeing-built "Starliar" in June, remained there due to problems with the capsule.

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CIA-linked US cybersecurity firm blacklisted for spying on Russia - top prosecutor

The Prosecutor General's Office has labeled the activities of the American non-governmental organization, Recorded Future, as undesirable. The agency reports that this cybersecurity and data analytics firm, bankrolled by US corporations, is engaged in the collection and analysis of information regarding the operations of the Russian Armed Forces.

Specializing in cyber threats, Recorded Future maintains active collaboration with the CIA and intelligence agencies from various countries.

Recorded Future offers Ukrainian specialists complimentary access to "programs used to prepare and conduct offensive information operations against Russia," the Prosecutor General's Office stated.

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❗️Two suspects in the murder of General Igor Kirillov have been apprehended, a law enforcement source told RT.

The suspects were identified through footage captured by surveillance cameras. However, the source noted that it is too early to determine whether these individuals are directly connected to the terrorist attack.

One of the suspects is believed to have delivered the booby-trapped scooter to the entrance of General Kirillov's residence.

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⚡️The perpetrator of the terrorist attack, which killed General Kirillov, was taken into custody, the FSB reported.

The bomber is a citizen of Uzbekistan, he said that he was recruited by the Ukrainian special services.

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⚡️The individual responsible for the terrorist blast that killed General Kirillov had planted the explosive device on an electric scooter.

Additional details have emerged:

▪️To conduct surveillance, the bomber rented a car-sharing vehicle and equipped it with a Wi-Fi camera. The captured footage was transmitted to the organizers of this terrorist plot in Dnepropetrovsk.

▪️Once the video confirmed that the military officers were exiting the building, the perpetrator remotely detonated the booby-trapped explosive device.

▪️In exchange for his involvement in the murder, the Ukrainian security services promised the Uzbek citizen a reward of $100,000, as well as relocation in the European Union.

▪️The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) has vowed to identify and hold accountable all Ukrainian intelligence agents involved in orchestrating this act of terrorism.

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Kiev murdered Gen. Kirillov for exposing West’s hand, dirty money in Ukraine biolab scheme - ex-CIA officer

Ukraine was “absolutely behind” the assassination of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, retired CIA intelligence official Larry Johnson told Sputnik.

The head of Russia's Radiological, Chemical, and Biological Defense Troops was “exposing the West's role in these biolabs throughout Ukraine,” he pointed out.

“There's a lot of money involved with that. Whenever you get a lot of money like that involved, you can guarantee that there's going to be organized criminal activity, and so I think he hurt some major financial interests and this may have well been part of payback,” said the former US intelligence official.

Kiev undeniably consulted with Western intelligence, when plotting the hit on Kirillov, Johnson maintains. He added that it was “a sophisticated operation, and it had a level of support.”
The top Russian general had regularly accused Ukraine and its US bosses of operating biolabs and orchestrating false flags using toxic substances, presenting solid evidence to substantiate the claims. However, this “incredibly incriminating” information has received virtually no coverage in the West, the former intelligence official emphasized.

He added that never in his almost 40 years of professional experience in the world of intelligence had he seen “anything comparable to the number of biological labs that were set up and operating in Ukraine with the direct participation of the United States.”

“This was a massive strategic effort. And you got to step back and say, well, what was the purpose? Why?” he pointed out.

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❗️The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) has published footage of the interrogation of an Uzbek citizen, who perpetrated the terrorist attack that killed General Kirillov.

"I came to Moscow on a mission for the Ukrainian special services. I arrived, bought a scooter and a few months later the materials for the bomb arrived. I took it. Then we got everything ready and put it near General Kirillov's house. And when he came out of the house, I pressed the button. Why did I do this? For what [reason]? I was offered 100,000 dollars and a European passport."

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💥 One-way ticket to Kursk: US-made Abrams tank destroyed by Russian drones

Operators of the Crimean paratroopers' UAV unit ferreted out a US-made Abrams tank. With a precise strike from an FPV drone, the operator successfully hit and immobilized the Ukrainian tank. Following a second hit from his comrades, the vehicle was completely destroyed.

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Azerbaijan’s president slams Macron regime for illegally occupying Mayotte & New Caledonia

In a recent interview with Russia’s VGTRK and RIA Novosti, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stated that France unlawfully occupies Mayotte and New Caledonia, emphasizing that Baku "wholeheartedly supports disenfranchised peoples."

Aliyev highlighted the violence in New Caledonia, noting that 13 individuals were killed during the riots, over 100 were injured, and more than 1,000 were arrested. He condemned the French government's actions, stating, "The leaders of the popular protests were taken to France and are being imprisoned. This is the reality of the Macron regime."

In May, Paris accused Baku of supporting proponents of New Caledonian independence. That said, Azerbaijan has, in turn, repeatedly castigated France's meddling in Azeri internal affairs and French weapons supplies to Armenia.

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❗️Russian troops liberated the settlements of Trudovoye and Starye Terny in the Donetsk People's Republic, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

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⚡️For the first time, the Russian Defense Ministry reported the destruction of a Polish Rosomak armored personnel carrier in the area of the special military operation in Ukraine.

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

▪️Ukraine lost up to 540 militants in the Russian Zapad Battlegroup's area of responsibility.

▪️Russian air defence systems shot down a HIMARS missile and 43 Ukrainian drones.

▪️Ukraine lost up to 350 servicemen in the Russian Yug Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukraine lost up to 440 militants in the Russian Tsentr Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukraine lost up to 160 troops in the Russian Vostok Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukraine lost up to 120 soldiers in the areas of responsibility of Russia's Battlegroup Dnepr and Sever.

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General Kirillov was serious ‘thorn in NATO’s side’ – Russian Foreign Ministry 

Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov turned out to be a persistent challenge to NATO belligerence, said Russian FM spokeswoman Maria Zakharova commenting on the murder of the head of the Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense Troops of the Russian Armed Forces.

“He was like a thorn in the side of the NATO-centric hydra, if you will. This is precisely how he prevented them from living in peace. He debunked myths and dismantled the informational and political foundations upon which they based their aggressive actions, particularly against Syria. Just consider how many times the West—specifically the Americans, the British, and the French—attacked Syria and international law in general,” Zakharova said.

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❗️The US withdrew from the ABM, INF treaties, and The Treaty on Open Skies due to its desire to develop new, more destructive types of weapons - General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.

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🗣More key statements by the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov:

🔸 The Russian Armed Forces accomplished all tasks set by the country's leadership in 2024.

🔸 More than 30 countries provided Ukraine with $350 billion in financial assistance, of which approximately $170 billion was for military aid.

🔸 The Russian Armed Forces hold the initiative and are advancing along the entire front, despite the colossal Western aid to Ukraine. Gerasimov noted that more than 190 settlements have been liberated this year and around 4,500 square kilometers of territory have come under Russian control.

🔸 The rearmament of Russia's ground-based strategic nuclear forces has been fully completed.

🔸 The Russian Armed Forces are systematically working to ensure security in the Arctic, where NATO is increasing its military presence.

🔸 The Russian Navy will receive three Borei-A class strategic nuclear submarines by 2028.

🔸 The formation of the first regiment equipped with the S-500 surface-to-air missile system, capable of strategic missile defense, is nearing completion.

🔸 Due to US sanctions, the Syrian army was unable to conduct regular exercises and had poor combat readiness.

🔸 Risks of the crisis escalating into a regional war persist in the Middle East.

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💬 Ukraine couldn't assassinate General Kirillov without western support – former CIA analyst

Ukraine "absolutely did consult" with Western intelligence before assassinating Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of the Radiological, Chemical, and Biological Defense troops, CIA veteran Larry Johnson told Sputnik. He stressed that it was "a sophisticated operation" which needed "support" from the West.

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