❗️The Russian Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case against Danish mercenary Annabelle Jorgensen, who participated in the incursion into the Kursk region as part of Ukraine's forces.

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Unwanted guest: Macron booed on arrival in cyclone-hit Mayotte

French President Emmanuel Macron was met by angry residents on his arrival to the cyclone-hit French island of Mayotte.

The president tried to explain to the people that it was the cyclone to blame for the troubles, not him. However, locals booed him and demanded his resignation.

At least 31 people died and thousands more affected by Cyclone Chido that hit the archipelago off the coast of Africa earlier this week.

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❗️ High-ranking officers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and Special Services were killed in an attack on Ukraine's Secret Service (SBU) headquarters in Kiev, according to the pro-Russian underground movement.

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‘Starmer, you freeze me this Christmas’

The parody song "Freezing This Christmas", inspired by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s austerity policies, has hit a weekly downloads chart in England.

The song was composed by marketing specialist nicknamed Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers. It pokes fun at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer who decided to cut central heating benefits for almost 10 million retired people.

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🇸🇰 Fico warns Zelensky against blocking Russian gas

Slovakian PM Robert Fico has warned Ukraine of the consequences if Kiev blocks the transit of Russian gas destined for Bratislava through its territory

"If Zelensky does not allow our gas, a serious conflict may arise," Fico said.

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Russian Army hits Ukraine’s ‘strategic’ weapons manufacturer in retaliatory strike – Why is it important?

The Russian military has launched a high-precision strike on the Luch, a Kiev-based weapons designer, among other targets, in response to a recent attack with Western-made missiles on the Rostov region. Let’s take a closer look at the Luch.

Shard of Soviet legacy now owned by Kiev

▪️It was established in the former Soviet Union in 1965 with the aim of designing guided munition;

▪️After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the Luch was handed over to Ukraine’s Defense Ministry;

▪️The bureau is mentioned in local media as a scientific and production enterprise of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex, which is of “strategic importance for the economy and security of the country”.

One of Kiev regime’s strategic armories

▪️The Luch designs and manufactures projectiles for the Olkha multiple launch rocket systems;

▪️It also produces the Neptune anti-ship missile systems;
Additionally, the bureau is involved in the research and development work on the creation of anti-tank guided missiles, land, air and sea-based missile systems, air guided missiles, anti-aircraft guided missiles, mine and torpedo weapons, as well as missile and other guided weapons control systems, plus anti-tank missile system simulators.

*the picture is AI-generated

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🥴 Zelensky told Fico that he would agree to the transit of Russian gas if Slovakia did not pay Russia for it until the end of the war

"But what fool would give us free gas?!" the Slovakian PM responded.

Zelensky also offered to "give" Slovakia €500 million from Russian assets if Fico voted for Ukraine's membership in NATO.

All this took place at a closed meeting in Brussels, where even European leaders were not allowed with mobile phones.

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Ukrainian forces have carried out a missile attack on the town of Rylsk in Russia's Kursk region, the acting governor of the region, Alexander Khinstein, said.

Emergency services are at the scene, he added.

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🎥🎥 President Putin chairs State Council meeting

👉Watch the livestream here or follow the link to the Sputnik's website

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Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of Rossiya Segodnya, Sputnik's parent media group, the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 3rd degree, for her contribution to the development of journalism

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Houthis vs Israel: What’s known about the new wave of escalation?

▪️On December 19, Yemeni Houthis attacked Israeli territory with 'Palestine-2' ballistic missiles. A number of military sites were targeted, with one rocket landing in Tel Aviv. The operation “successfully achieved its objectives,” the militia said. However, Israeli authorities only admitted that a school building in Ramat Gan, a suburb of Tel Aviv, was damaged.

▪️The Israeli Air Force responded by striking military targets belonging to Houthis in Yemen.

▪️ This has been the third Israeli attack on Yemen over the past five months. But this time, Israel attacked the Yemeni capital of Sanaa for the first time.

▪️On Thursday, Houthis leader Abdelmalik al-Houthi highlighted that "two hypersonic ballistic missiles were launched, the first was after dinner, and the other coincided with the movement of the Israeli warplanes, which carried out an aggression on our country. The hypersonic missile was launched towards the Israeli Ministry of Defense, and this caused great confusion."

▪️In turn, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu called the Houthis "the last stronghold" of the Axis of Resistance and promised they would pay a high price for missile attacks on Israeli territory.

▪️On the same day, Houthi Ministry of Information advisor Tawfiq al-Humairi said Yemen is “in a state of conflict with the Israeli regime”.

Yemeni Houthis, who are part of the so-called Axis of Resistance, have regularly fired drones and rockets towards Israel in solidarity with Palestinians suffering as a result of Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.

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POV: Western air defenses try to intercept Russia's 'cutting-edge' Oreshnik missile

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❗️There are dead and injured after Ukrainian shelling of Russia's Rylsk in the Kursk region and the exact numbers are being established, according to preliminary data announced by Russia's Investigative Committee

The committee has opened a criminal case for terrorism in connection with the shelling.

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❗️The strike on Rylsk was carried out with HIMARS MLRS, said the acting head of the Kursk region Alexander Khinshtein.

According to him, the Ukrainian Armed Forces deliberately choose civilian objects as targets. Thus, as a result of today's attack, the buildings of a cultural center, college, school, and fire department were damaged.

Ukrainian forces are making repeated attempts to launch missile attacks on Russia's territory of the Kursk region, acting Governor Khinshtein said.

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Trump's victory fits into three brown boxes

US electoral protocols from the different states have been delivered to Capitol.

On January 6, Congress will approve the election results and the new president will take office on January 20.

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What's the US deep state and how could BRICS stop it?

The US deep state is "essentially a philosophy where a few profit at the expense of the majority, expressed in various ways," Lillie Ferriol Prat, a project/research assistant at the BRICS Research Institute of the Durban University of Technology, South Africa, who is conducting research on this mysterious entity, tells Sputnik.

She traces its origins back to the establishment of the US Federal Reserve System, which was authorized to print money, while its co-founders, American and European financial dynasties, laid the groundwork for future liberal globalism.

"In modern times, one of the key foundational components has been the establishment of the Fed and the resulting debt-driven monetary mechanics, which paved the way for dollar dominance and aggressive globalization—an ideal scenario for a few selected individuals," Ferriol Prat explains.

Given that the dollar's dominance ensures the enrichment of the US elite, it seems one of the deep state's roles has long been to preserve this hegemony.

However, the weaponization of the dollar is prompting some global players to seek alternatives to the greenback and the Western-centric clearing system controlled by the US. The BRICS bloc is championing the idea of an independent financial and settlement payment system.

"The paradigm shift led by BRICS (and now BRICS+) towards an inclusive and just multilateral system must be supported by alternative financial institutions and settlement instruments to structurally prevent a top-down approach and instead promote a structure where each country can decide what is most convenient for its people," says Ferriol Prat.

Apparently, the US deep state now faces a painful dilemma whether to ramp up its destructive policies, adapt to new conditions, or become a relic of the past.

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❗️At least six people, including a child, were killed in Russia's Rylsk in the Kursk region as a result of a missile strike by Ukrainian militants, acting Governor Alexander Khinshtein said.

Ten people, including a 13-year-old child, were taken to hospital with injuries, Khinshtein added.

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❗️Russia to raise issue of Ukrainian strikes on Rylsk on Friday at UN Security Council meeting, Russian FM spokeswoman Maria Zakharova tells Sputnik.

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Deceased Sputnik correspondent Russell Bentley's widow, Lyudmila, said that she is pleased that the trial of those accused of his murder is focused on finding out the truth.

She spoke to journalists after a closed court session in Donetsk, a Sputnik correspondent reports.

Earlier, on November 25, at the first court session, the judge ruled to carry out the trial in a closed-off format. At the session on December 5, the court rejected the defense's motion to open sessions to the press.

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